Second Best
by LovelyGucci
Summary: *Alternate Ending Added* Mello wants nothing more than to defeat Near. Nothing else matters to him. When he saves a girl randomly one night, she decides to devote her life to him and now Mello realizes something else might matter to him more than defeating Near.
1. New

**A/N: I decided to rewrite this story to change things up a bit. I finished rewatching Death Note so it inspired me to tweak my old stories and come up with new ideas. For the most part, the story is the same. I fixed grammar issues and changed some things that people said. The main difference in this story is when Matt appears in the story until the end. **

**This story has sex, bad language, cheating and death so if you're not a particular fan of this then best to just avoid it. I hope you enjoy this revision and please leave a review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note.**

**Chapter 1: New**

Julia ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She didn't know where she was going and it was pitch black outside, but she couldn't let him catch up to her. Who knew what he would do now? Kill her that much was obvious. Tears ran down her cheeks and her chest was heaving up and down quickly as she pushed herself to keep going.

She just couldn't believe they were gone. They were dead.

It had started out as a good day. She aced her chemistry exam, did well on her speech in English class, and even got asked out by her crush. She was just an ordinary high school student having a normal day.

She went to her friend's house that night, just to hang out and gossip, like the usual teenage girl. She had dinner there and they finished their homework together, so by the time she made it home, it was already late.

All the lights were out when she had entered, so she figured everyone was just asleep. As she made her way upstairs, however, she had noticed how eerily silent the whole house seemed. It made the hairs on her neck stand up as she scanned the rooms in the darkness. She crept as quietly as she could into her parents' bedroom. She could make out their forms on the bed, but if she didn't have the feeling in her gut that something was definitely wrong, she would have accepted this and gone to her room. Instead she had flicked on the lights and screamed at the sight in front of her.

There was blood all over the place, staining the otherwise light colored surroundings. It was obvious that her parents were bludgeoned to death and the sight made Julia feel sick. The blood soaked into the sheets and splattered onto the floor.

Tears leaked from her eyes, wondering what monster would do such a thing to innocent people. Her question was answered as the culprit made his presence known from behind the door.

He was a tall, dark-haired man with a very sinister look in his eyes. Blood was splattered on his shirt, but Julia knew it wasn't his.

"Lookie what we have here…" he said snidely as Julia's stomach twisted into a knot. He eyed her up and down and grinned maniacally. "Now, we can't have you going around telling the cops what I've done. Looks like I'm gonna hafta keep you quiet." He took a step towards her and she bolted out of the room as fast as she could. The man caught on to what she was doing and ran after her. He jumped from the second floor to the first; skipping the stairs to cut her off before she could make it down all the way. She squeaked in surprise.

"Nice try, baby doll," he told her. "You're not getting away that easily."

"Why would you do this?" Julia pleaded to the man as tears poured down her cheeks. Her voice was weak and cracking but she tried her hardest to sound brave and strong.

"Why?" the man asked. "Because I felt like it."

Julia widened her eyes. She realized she wouldn't get out of this alive if she did nothing. She decided to take a chance and maybe it could work. She delivered a swift kick to his lower area and succeeded in hurting him. He doubled over in pain and began cursing at her. "You little bitch! I'm gonna strangle you!"

She leaped over his body and found a lamp nearby. Without thinking, she slammed it on the man, his head colliding with the piece of furniture. He went down hard.

Julia was breathing heavy now. Not only were her parents killed but she might have actually killed this man as well. There was a large cut on his head and blood was spilling out onto the floor. She backed up until her back hit the wall and slid down onto the floor, finally breaking down and sobbing into her hands. What was she going to do now? She had no other family nearby and she was only sixteen. She wasn't old enough to get her own place yet.

A sudden movement caught her eye. The man was alive! He was struggling to get up.

"Damn it!" he cursed. "You're dead, bitch!" He got up, despite his injuries, and advanced towards Julia again. She scrambled to stand and ran out of the house, the murderer hot on her trail.

She just kept running. Her chest was burning and her body was begging her to stop and take a break but she wouldn't. She couldn't.

"Help!" she yelled out as she ran through the streets. "Someone please help me!"

"No one's gonna save you now!" the man yelled from behind her.

She turned a corner and continued yelling for someone. "Help me!" Her heart stopped when she saw she had hit a dead end down an alley. There was nowhere to go. She was trapped.

The man's maniacal laugh caused her to jump and she whipped around to see he was right behind her. He didn't have that playful smile anymore. He was angry and ready to kill.

"You sure know how to piss a guy off, don't you?" he asked as he stepped toward her, grabbing her arm roughly.

"Help!" Julia tried again. The man placed his hand over her mouth to muffle her screams, slamming her head against the brick wall behind her. The impact caused her to see stars and she could feel a headache coming on.

"You're really startin' to hurt my ears, you know that?"

Julia sobbed against his hand. She reached up and managed to move his hand away from her mouth before looking up at him with her dark blue eyes. "Please, just let me go…"

The man shook his head. "No can do." Then, in the blink of an eye, he wrapped his large hands around her neck and squeezed as hard as he could, suffocating her. She coiled her hands around his wrists, trying to pull him off, but it was no use. She could see the world around her slowly fading. It seemed liked the end for her.

Suddenly, there was a loud gunshot and the man instantly dropped Julia in pain. She collapsed on the floor and just managed to catch a glimpse at her savior before her world went black.

* * *

"Hey, wake up," a voice said. It sounded so far away, and Julia could barely hear it. Everything was black around her, like she was dreaming.

A sudden jerk woke her up fully, however, and she slowly opened her eyes. The pain in her neck was so overwhelming that she almost wanted to be in that sleep-like state again just to make it go away. Her hand went directly to her neck, almost as if to cover the pain. She took in her surroundings and saw that she was in what seemed like an abandoned warehouse. Someone was hovering over her body, and Julia jumped before realizing that this man was not the murderer who had been pursuing her. He had blonde hair and intimidating blue eyes, and she quickly realized that this was the man who had rescued her.

"Geez, you've been out for like three days," he said.

Julia groaned as she sat up. She had been lying on blankets that were put together to form a bed and found that it wasn't comfortable at all. "Where am I?"

"It's just an old warehouse," he replied. "I've been living here."

Instead of responding, she continued to look around at the small space. It was rather creepy to look at in the dark, which reminded her of more pressing matters. "That man!" she exclaimed facing the blonde in front of her. "What happened to him?"

"Dead," the guy replied. "He was pretty messed up before I even got to him though. Was that your work?"

Julia nodded slowly. "He murdered my parents," she said quietly. A few tears sprang from her eyes as she remembered seeing their beaten bodies in their own home. She covered her face in her hands and couldn't stop the sobs that racked through her whole body. "He was trying to kill me too because I had seen him there." She tried to explain. "Why did you save me?"

He shrugged. "So what's your name?"

"Julia Ferris," she replied quietly. "You?"

He hesitated. "Mello."

Julia tilted her head to the side. "Mello? Is that like a nickname or something?" Despite the traumatic events, she felt silly sobbing in front of him, and so she wiped her tears with the back of her hand again as she waited for him to respond.

"Right, well enough formalities. I think you're good enough to go back home or whatever."

Julia's eyes widened at the thought of returning to her house. "No, please don't make me go back! I have nowhere else to go!"

Mello sighed in annoyance. "Look, I can't be stuck babysitting when I have important things to do. Sorry, but you're gonna hafta go. You're gonna hold me back from catching Kira and that is the most important thing right now."

Julia paused, making sure she had heard the words 'catching Kira' correctly, but decided to wait to question him about that later. Instead she shook her head frantically. "I won't hold you back! I promise! I can help you with anything. I had the highest marks in my class and I'm pretty clever. I'm sure I could be of use to you and if I'm not then you can abandon me. Just please, don't leave me alone now." She pleaded with her eyes and hoped it was working. They were glistening with tears again. Even though he wasn't much better off than she was in this shabby abandoned warehouse, at least she wouldn't be alone.

Mello seemed thoughtful as he watched Julia for a moment. Was there really any use for her? It's not like Mello had anyone else to help him at the moment. And if she was as smart as she claimed to be, maybe she could be of some benefit. "Okay, we'll see how it works out," Mello told her. "You can stay."

* * *

After two days, Julia still couldn't believe she was living with a young stranger. He had given her his make-shift bed, which only caused more neck pain, while he took to lying against the wall at night to sleep. Julia felt extremely weird not going to school and knowing she couldn't go back home. She didn't know how long it would take for her to adjust to her new life.

Julia sat up, groaning. Another sleepless night. Not only was her bed uncomfortable but she was also having nightmares of her parents' dead bodies lying in their bed. The man would always chase her down and actually end up killing her in the dream.

She shuddered, trying to rid her mind of the horrible thoughts as she looked around at her new home. Mello was nowhere to be seen at the moment, but she could see a newspaper right next to her. Mello must have brought it in for her, because on the headlines was the story of her family.

She picked it up and scanned through the words that were printed in black and white. Julia could feel more tears stinging her eyes as she began to read the paper, talking about how the parents of the family were horribly murdered. Julia imagined the whole event in her mind, which only caused her to cry more. She could picture her father trying to protect her mother and being killed first. Shortly after, her mother would die, not being able to guard herself. And all the while, no one had been there to save them.

Near the end of the article, it mentioned how the Ferris' had two daughters: the oldest was in Florida attending college while the youngest, Julia, was gone. It was speculated that either the murderer had taken her with him or she was killed somewhere else, since her body was yet to be found.

Julia tossed the paper aside, taking in a deep breath and trying to control her emotions. Mello wasn't exactly comforting with her situation and she didn't want to annoy him more than she was sure she already was.

While thinking this, Mello came into the warehouse, carrying a bag from the local market. He had a blank look on his face and Julia couldn't read his thoughts.

"Crying again, huh?" Mello asked, taking in her puffy and tear-stained face. "I take it you read the paper then."

Julia only nodded.

"Are you going to the funeral? I read that it's tomorrow."

"No," Julia replied shaking her head. "I can't. My older sister's gonna be there. We don't get along at all and besides, she'd probably have to take me in or something since I'm a minor. I'd be better off just staying here with you and letting the world forget about me entirely."

"What do you have against your sister?" Mello asked her. He took a seat across from her and seemed almost interested in their conversation.

"There's nothing actually wrong with her, but ever since I can remember, I've always been compared to her. 'Julia, why can't you be like your sister?' 'Rose never behaved like this when she was your age.' There's only so much I can take. She's always been better than me at everything. I think it would just be best if she and everyone else just thought I was dead."

Mello shrugged. "Whatever works for you." He then dug into the store bag and pulled out a small box. Upon closer inspection, Julia could see that it was hair dye. "I got this for you. We're gonna be here for a while and I figure you don't wanna be cooped up in here forever. People will recognize you as the dead people's daughter and I know you don't want that."

"Black?" she asked. She pulled on a strand of her light brown hair. "I like my hair color."

"Just do it."

Julia reluctantly agreed and by the time her hair was completely black, she couldn't even recognize herself. She looked like a completely different person.

"I like it better this way," Mello said offhandedly.

She looked at him in surprise and blushed. "Black is actually my natural hair color. I haven't worn it like this in a long time."

"At least the hair dye will serve its purpose for now."

* * *

Julia was feeling extremely antsy the next day. It was the day of the funeral and Julia wanted to go, but she didn't at the same time. She knew that made no sense, which was why she didn't voice any of this to Mello.

He was very observant though. She knew he could tell what was she was thinking and what she wanted to do. She didn't find this fair, as she had a hard time reading his thoughts, but she figured she'd be able to in time.

"Just go already," Mello said suddenly, snapping Julia from her thoughts.

She turned to look at him and gave him a surprised look. "Go where? I didn't say anything."

"You wanna go to the funeral so just go already. I can practically smell the desperation."

"I…uh, I can't," Julie replied looking down at her hands. "They'll probably be looking for me and I don't wanna see my sister."

Mello rolled his eyes at her. "Fine, I'll take you tonight so you can say goodbye or whatever. That way you won't accidentally run into anyone and I'll be there to protect you."

This was surprising. He was actually being really sweet to her and Julia found that she liked it a lot. "Thanks Mello. I really appreciate it."

"Whatever."

It didn't take long to get to the cemetery. For some reason, Julia felt really nervous. Mello was there with her, so it wasn't because she might be caught. It was more like knowing that this was it. This would be her final goodbye to her parents and her old life. She would become a completely different person after this night and she wasn't sure if she was totally ready for that. Still, she knew it had to be done, and following Mello around would almost secure her safety.

"I hate cemeteries," Mello complained as they walked side-by-side to find her parents' graves. "Creeps me out having all these dead people around."

"Same here," Julia agreed solemnly. She was getting ready to give up looking for her parents graves among the nearly identical stones, until her eyes landed on the two that had 'Ferris' carved into them in large, bold letters. They were laying there, side by side even in death, and a few tears sprang from Julia's eyes.

"I'll just give you a minute then," Mello said, already walking away from her. He didn't seem to be one for tears. Julia felt that maybe it made him uncomfortable, but she couldn't help it.

She watched him go for a moment before turning back to the graves and crouching down in front of them. She wiped the tears with the back of her hand hastily and tried to hold in a sob. "It-it's not fair…why did he have to take you fr-from me?"

"Julia?" a voice asked from behind her. It wasn't Mello's voice, and she whipped around to come face to face with her older sister. She was crying as she stepped towards the surprised brunette. "You're alive? When they didn't find your body, everyone assumed you were dead!"

Julia still didn't say anything, even as her sister wrapped her arms around her. She could see Mello leaning against the nearby tree watching the little reunion and Julia narrowed her eyes at him. He only shrugged. Apparently, the concept of avoiding her sister was just lost on him.

"What are you doing here?" Julia asked.

"I just wanted to see them again," Rose replied. "You know, when the crowd isn't around. I didn't recognize you at first but your boyfriend over there told me what you were doing here."

Julia stared at her in disbelief. "My…boyfriend?"

Rose nodded. "He's kinda scary…though you never really did have good taste in men…"

Julia narrowed her eyes. She knew Rose was going to put her down about her choices in life like she always did, but this time she wasn't going to take it.

"Just stop it."

Rose eyed her in confusion. "Excuse me?"

"I just want you to know that I'm leaving now, so just pretend like you never saw me. I died when that man chased me down the alleyway after witnessing him murdering our parents."

"Julia, what are you talking about? You're not dead."

"I might as well be, 'cause you're never gonna see me again. My life went downhill when that man laid his filthy hands on me. I'm moving on and living a new life now, and I'd appreciate it if you'd let me do that. Goodbye." She made to move away from her and back to Mello when her sister placed a hand on her arm.

"Please don't go," Rose pleaded.

Julia didn't answer. Instead, she moved her sister's hand from her arm and continued walking. She faced Mello and as seriously as she could, she muttered, "Let's go."

As Julia stepped forward, next to Mello, she realized she really was leaving her life behind. She felt that the old Julia really had died that night. This was a new Julia, and she was getting ready to live almost like a fugitive. Yet somehow, this seemed better than facing a life with her sister and without her parents. She only hoped that she could adapt fast enough, or she really wouldn't have anything or anyone to cling to.


	2. Inferior

**Chapter 2: Inferior**

Julia watched Mello for a moment as he worked diligently on his laptop. She really had nothing to do at the moment and as she looked down at her dirty clothes, she realized she needed to do something about it.

"Hey Mello," Julia started. She must have looked pathetic wearing the same clothes for the past few days, not to mention she felt dirty. "Don't you think I should get new clothes? I mean, I've been like this for about three days."

"Yeah, you are starting to smell," Mello added, not even looking at her.

Julia just stared at him, not sure if he was trying to be mean or if he was just joking her but she ignored it. "So, new clothes? Yes, no, maybe so?"

Mello finally glanced at her and nodded. "Yeah, we can go in a few minutes and get you something new to wear. Would that make you happy?"

Julia blinked. "Yes, actually. Thank you."

The blonde shrugged. "Don't get all sappy on me. I just don't want you stinking up the place. I live here too you know."

Julia rolled her eyes at him. "Wow, for a moment there, I thought you were actually being nice."

Julia wasn't exactly sure where he got the money for them to buy her clothes but she didn't ask. It wasn't like she really wanted to know anyway, though she couldn't complain about him buying her things either.

They rode to a nearby shopping center on Mello's motorcycle, which Julia was actually excited to ride. She never would have ridden on a motorcycle because the idea always frightened her, but with Mello driving it, she somehow felt safe. She sat behind him and held onto him tightly around his waist.

When they made it to a small boutique, the first words out of Mello's mouth were, "Get practical clothes." Julia eyed him for a moment and Mello sighed. "You girls always insist on buying frilly and unnecessary things. Just buy practical clothes. That's all you need."

"Not even just one cute thing?" Julia asked. She gave him a puppy dog look and even he was surprised when he gave in.

"Fine, but just one thing."

Julia nodded and proceeded in searching around the store for something she would wear. She would ask for Mello's opinion here and there but he really wasn't much help. He insisted on being impartial on her particles of clothing, which didn't satisfy her. She wanted some sort of response from him. Of course, that might have been asking too much.

After an hour of shopping and listening to Mello grumble about how she was taking too long, they finally left the stores and went to a nearby candy store, since the aggressive blonde was craving chocolate at the moment. Julia had changed into one of her outfits before leaving and was content that Mello was eyeing her up and down.

"You like?" Julia asked, jokingly twirling for him to see her entire outfit. She was wearing a dark blue, short-sleeved shirt and a pink mini skirt. A pink, blue, and white plaid vest rested over her shirt and a pair of pink flats graced her feet.

Mello grunted. "It looks good. Too bad it's not practical. I can't wait to see you riding my bike in that."

Julia paused. She mentally cursed herself for forgetting that detail but decided to play it off. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She would manage just to spite him.

They made it into a colorful candy store and Julia smiled. "You know, my parents and I used to come here all the time when I was younger," she reminisced. "We always got this huge selection of jelly beans and a bunch of the sour candies and mix them all together."

Mello gave her a look. "Hey, I don't have parents either but you don't see me complaining about it."

Julia's small smile fell. "You don't have to be so insensitive about everything."

Mello ignored her and walked straight into the section with all the chocolates. Julia caught up with him and watched as he grabbed a plastic bag and began placing many chunks of chocolate in it.

"So, when did you lose your parents?"

Mello shrugged casually. "I can't even remember. I've lived in an orphanage practically my whole life."

Julia nodded. "Where are you from? I can tell you have a bit of an accent."

"England," he replied curtly. "Do you want any of these chocolates?"

Julia shook her head. "I don't like chocolate. I prefer fruit flavored candies. So if you're from England, then what are you doing all the way in Los Angeles?"

"I've got something I have to do."

Julia smirked. "You like to be vague about things, don't you?" She then wandered over to the jelly beans that she had grown to love over the years and began placing them in her own bag.

"Well, have you been here your whole life?" Mello asked casually. He folded his arms across his chest and leaned his back against the wall beside Julia. She watched him curiously, not quite believing the fact that he had actually asked her something about her life. He wasn't looking at her though, but she answered anyway.

"Yeah, pretty much. Nothing exciting about that, unfortunately."

"You got a boyfriend?" Mello asked.

Julia's eyes widened and she could feel her cheeks burning. "What?"

"It's just a question."

The brunette looked down at her shoes before shaking her head. "No, I don't have a boyfriend. At this point, I don't even have friends. Just you."

Mello scoffed. "C'mon let's go. I'm starving."

Julia half smiled at him as they made their way to a nearby restaurant, sitting outside to enjoy the nice weather as they ate. Julia had on sunglasses and a white hat to hide her features from the passersby, and she just felt at ease for once. With no one recognizing her, she would be able to live her own life without the hassle of people reminding her about her misfortune. She could start over.

"So, you used to live in England in an orphanage," Julia started. "And you just randomly decided to capture Kira on your own?" At Mello's confused expression, Julia told him, "I remember you saying how that was your first priority when we first met."

"Have you ever heard of L, the detective?"

Julia nodded. "He's the guy trying to catch Kira, right? Yeah, I've heard of him. He must be pretty smart or something."

"Well, in the event that anything happens to him, he has a line of successors to take over for him. Wammy's house isn't an ordinary orphanage. They groom us to be L's successors."

Julia's eyes widened slightly. "You…? You're supposed to be L's successor? Wait, did something happen to him? I thought he was still trying to stop Kira."

Mello shook his head. "Kira killed him."

Julia placed a hand over her mouth in shock. "He's dead? That's awful…"

The waiter came at that moment and took their order. They paused in the middle of their conversation, since it wasn't exactly something that should be overheard. As soon as he left, Mello began talking again.

"Since L was unable to choose who would succeed him before he died, it was between myself and another person at the orphanage named Near." Mello clenched his fist in annoyance before continuing. "That damn Near! I've never been able to beat him at anything! I need to catch Kira so I can finally prove that I'm better than him, once and for all!"

Julia was stunned by his determination. It appeared he had a bit of an inferiority complex driving him towards his goal. It explained why he seemed to have a one-track mind.

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked curiously. Not that she minded, but this really was a first. Having Mello speak openly about something like this when he had been so secretive before.

"Well, since you'll be helping me, I figure you should have the whole back story."

Julia nodded. "I see. Don't worry Mello. I'll help you beat Near. It's the least I can do since you saved my life. I'll help you no matter what."

* * *

Mello and Julia lived in that old warehouse for about a few months before Mello turned eighteen. He and Julia managed to come up with some money and bought a place for themselves where they managed to find information on Kira and actually start becoming friends, surprisingly. Julia found it hard at first, not being able to live the life that she was used to, but she was adjusting to her new one.

They stayed in the small apartment they had rented for a year; Mello turned nineteen while Julia turned seventeen, and in that time, Mello managed to find out about the Death Note and had realized he wanted to get his hands on it. He also learned of Near's involvement in the case and how he had organized the SPK to find a way to defeat Kira. Mello knew that if he didn't find an organization to help him, he would never find a way to outwit Near.

* * *

Mello sat at the small dining table as he watched Julia cook the both of them dinner. He found that he quite enjoyed it when she cooked for them, not that he'd ever tell her that. Although he had been opposed to it at first, he was really glad to have her around. Once she got over the initial shock of losing her parents, she had gotten back to her usual self, which Mello learned was a bubbly personality. She was a good listener and always had good ideas; not like any of the stupid girls at Wammy's.

"Jules," Mello said to her. That was his nickname for her and Julia had grown to love it. She turned around to look at him curiously.

"Hmm?"

"I came up with a plan for us to get the notebook."

"And that would be?" Julia asked, turning back to the food.

Mello bit off a chunk of the chocolate he was eating before dinner before responding.

"I'm going to join a huge organization to give me the power and resources to obtain it. I was thinking the Mafia."

Julia paused. She turned to look at him slowly and raised an eyebrow at him. "What? Are you crazy? They eat people like us for breakfast and you want to be involved with them? And what am I going to do? We've come this far together and now you're gonna abandon me?"

"You'd be coming with me, Jules," he replied easily.

Julia scoffed. "If you think for one second I'm going to be joining the Mafia with you, you must be crazy. I've seen those movies; I don't want a chopped up piece of horse in my bed." She walked over to the cabinet to grab their plates and when she turned back around, Mello was right there in her face. Julia jumped at their proximity and backed up, her back hitting against the counter so she couldn't move anymore. Mello had a mischievous smirk on his lips and Julia couldn't help but blush. They'd been together for more than two years, so it only made sense that Julia would start developing feelings for him, not that she would ever tell him that. She was mentally cursing her feelings however, as he was probably aware of how she felt for him and was using it against her. She wouldn't put it past him.

"You don't want to come with me?" Mello asked.

Julia took a deep breath before pushing him away from her, increasing the space in between them. "Well, you're the one who wants to prove himself. I'm not gonna risk my life for your selfish needs."

Mello's face fell. "Are you serious?"

Julia hesitated, making eye contact with Mello. They stared at each other for a few moments before Julia groaned. "Just let me think about this, okay?" She then proceeded in rolling her eyes. "Geez, you're like one of those people that once they think of something, they won't even bother thinking up a backup plan. What if this Mafia thing doesn't work out? What are you gonna do then?"

Mello shrugged. "I usually make things up as I go. I'll figure something out."

Julia chuckled. "You always do, don't you?"

Julia served their dinners with a smile before sitting down across from him. He dug into the food with gusto and Julia watched him for a second. He had told her before about Near, and how he always came second best to him because he thought with his heart too much. He always let his emotions get in the way. Because of this, he really didn't make a good detective, despite his brains and cleverness. Julia found, however, that it was what she loved most about him. He wasn't distant or cold like she was sure Near probably was.

"What is it?" Mello asked, looking at Julia. He had noticed her staring at him and gave her a confused look.

Julia shook her head. "Nothing. Just thinking."

"Well, don't stare at me like that. It creeps me out."

Julia didn't say anything as she continued to eat. As much as the thought of working with the Mafia worried her, she wanted to follow Mello wherever he went. Ever since he saved her from that killer two years ago, she had been completely devoted to him; at first because he was the only person around, and now because she cared about him. And so, even though she wanted nothing to do with the Mafia, she reluctantly agreed to go with him.


	3. Assault

**Chapter 3: Assault**

After a year and six months of outstanding work with the Mafia, Mello was seen by the shady men as a valuable member of their team and could use them to get what he wanted. And what he wanted most was the Death Note.

He had found out that it was in the hands of the Japanese task force and he was willing to do whatever was necessary to take it; even if that meant bringing innocent people into it.

"You're joking right?" Julia asked him. They were in the Mafia headquarters sitting on the comfortable blue couch. Julia was sitting next to Mello and had an incredulous look on her face. "You're going to resort to kidnapping now? Possession of drugs was bad enough but these are people's lives at stake, Mello." She hated all the so called "work" he was doing with these people now. She knew his goal was to surpass Near by catching Kira, but it just seemed like he was doing more bad than good.

One of the Mafia members scoffed. Julia had never learned his name and didn't really care to. She hated all of them except the blonde beside her. "Quit being so high and mighty."

"Jules, you knew what was at risk when we joined," Mello explained, biting into his chocolate. "You shouldn't have come if you couldn't handle it."

Julia wanted to remind him that he had practically begged her to come with him after she refused but she held her tongue. There was no point in arguing with him. He would just get upset and ignore her for the rest of the day.

Julia crossed her arms in front of her chest and pouted. "Whatever. Just count me out of this one."

"Jules…"

She got up from her seat, upset that Mello would embarrass her like that in front of those low-lives, and marched up to the room she and Mello were sharing at headquarters. Since there wasn't much room and Julia didn't feel comfortable being on her own with all the strange men, Mello had offered to stay with her. It wasn't always the best arrangement, however, especially in times like these when she was upset with him.

"Looks like you're not gettin' lucky tonight, Mello," one of the men teased him as she left. "Someone's in the dog house."

Julia ignored that comment, but she was boiling inside. This wasn't the first time comments of that sort had been made. The worst part was that Mello wouldn't stand up for her. He already had enough of an inferiority complex because of Near, so he wanted to seem like the best to these men. Apparently, that meant occasionally bragging to them about a nonexistent sex life. Oh, how she hated being here.

Julia glared at the wall across from her as that insufferable Andrew Miller continuously hit on her. For some reason, it was just the two of them in the room and he wouldn't leave her alone.

"C'mon," he coaxed. He placed a hand on her knee and she pushed it away quickly.

"Don't be such a prude," he said with a smirk. "I bet you'd do anything for Mello."

"Yeah, well, you're not Mello, huh?" she replied curtly. "Now back off!"

He took a strand of her long black hair and ran his fingers through it. "I don't want to. C'mon, there's no one around," he said, leaning over her. She put her hands on his chest to push him away but he was too strong.

"If you don't get off me, I'll scream," Julia warned him. "I'm sure Mello won't like the fact that you're trying to force yourself on me." She hated this damn place. Every single guy in there was a sleaze bag, and Andrew Miller was easily the most disgusting. Of course he would be the one to make a move on her.

Andrew shrugged as she continued, with no luck, to try to push him away. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him."

"Except I do know," a voice told him. Andrew Miller quickly turned around to see that Mello was standing behind him with his arms crossed. He was glaring daggers at the man and Julia sighed in relief. He had come to save her after all. "Get off her." Mello added.

"Right…" he grumbled. He hesitantly moved away from her. However as she stood up to make her way over to Mello, Andrew took the opportunity and smacked her behind. She squeaked at the contact and glared back at him.

"What the hell? Keep your damn hands to yourself!" she yelled.

Andrew just laughed at her. She didn't look back at him as she walked past Mello, her head held high but her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

Mello caught up with her and led the way down to the basement. Why? Julia wasn't sure, but she didn't want to leave his sight just yet.

"Why didn't you stop him?" Mello asked. "I know you could have taken him."

"I couldn't. He likes it."

Mello scoffed. "Sadistic bastard."

Julia shrugged. "Besides maybe I just wanted you to come and save me. So where are we going?" she asked. She didn't want to give him time to respond to her comment, and thankfully he didn't.

Mello smirked. "I've got my first hostage."

Julia's eyes widened. "What? Who?"

"Takimura," Mello said. "The director of the NPA." Julia sighed to herself as they continued.

While walking to the basement, the pair was joined by Rod Ross, the leader of the Mafia. He seemed frighteningly excited about this hostage thing and Julia felt sick. These were messed up people. Why did Mello insist on working with them?

Julia's heart quickened its pace when she saw the Japanese man tied down to the chair. He looked hurt, like the others had beaten answers out of him, and Julia wanted to back out now. Mello had a sickening smile on his face as he whipped out a bar of chocolate and proceeded in taking a huge bite of it. The snap of the chocolate echoed against the empty walls. Apparently Ross wasn't the only one thrilled by the situation, and Julia felt even more nauseous than before.

"Has he decided to say anything yet?" Ross asked.

Rashual Bid, the big black guy on the team, answered him. "He told us the Japanese police are gonna wimp out on Kira. Looks like right now, the only ones who are officially working for L are Soichiro Yagami, Kanzo Mogi, and Touta Matsuda. Isn't that right?"

"Yeah," the director told them. He was bent over in his chair staring down at the ground. "There was also Ukita, but he was killed by Kira." Julia felt awful for him, and she was disgusted by the fact that she was actually associated with the people who did this to him. She was seriously considering walking out, but then she glanced at Mello and changed her mind. Damn the influence he had over her.

Rashual scoffed. "Right. And as top cop, somehow you didn't know that this notebook even existed. Or that you had it."

The guy next to him, whose name was unknown to Julia, started laughing. "Japanese cops must be a joke."

Mello walked up to the hostage and looked down on him. "Of all the investigators on the task force, deputy director Yagami would be the highest ranking, right?"

"Y-yeah," the director replied.

Mello looked triumphant. "My theory is that there are two notebooks out there. One of them is in Kira's possession. The other's with the NPA. We're gonna take both of them."

Rashual and the other guy were confused by this statement, wondering why he needed both. Julia just rolled her eyes, knowing what this was about.

"Don't worry," Ross assured them. "As long as we do what Mello says, there'll be no mistakes. It's been a year and a half since he and the girl joined us and in that entire time they haven't been wrong about anything." It was true; she and Mello did make a good team even if they weren't doing the things they should be doing. If Mello hadn't asked her to help though, she wouldn't have.

"Yeah, but that's what's so weird," the guy said. "If he was able to bring us the head of a Mafia boss that even Kira himself couldn't kill, why the hell would he even need a notebook to begin with?"

"It's not just the notebook I'm after," Mello said. He crumpled the wrapping from his chocolate bar tightly in his hand. "I wanna eliminate my competition. I will be the best. I don't care what it takes; I'll beat Near by any means necessary." And in the end, with Mello, it always came down to that.

* * *

Later that night, most of the Mafia members, including Mello and Julia, were sitting in their hangout room. Ross had brought in his usual prostitute and was all over her, nauseatingly displaying his desires to the entire room. Julia tried not to look but they were making it annoyingly obvious of what they wanted to do. Ross was even shirtless.

Mello was sitting near them, lounging on the couch and enjoying his chocolate bar like it was no big deal. Julia was a seat away from him and unfortunately for her, Andrew Miller was on her other side, sitting right next to her.

He ran his hand along her shoulder softly. Julia pursed her lips in annoyance before turning to look at him.

"You better stop it," she threatened.

Andrew sighed. "The sooner you admit you want me, the better it will be for the both of us." Julia clenched her teeth but didn't respond.

"You don't move your hand in five seconds I'm gonna punch you in the face," she spat.

Neither of them noticed, but Mello was watching the scene diligently. He didn't like how he kept pursuing Julia like that when she obviously wasn't interested. More than pursuing, really; it was closer to a series of assaults. He wasn't sure why he felt so protective of her but something needed to done about that guy.

Rashual suddenly burst into the room looking surprised and out of breath. "Boss!"

"Shut up," Ross yelled at him. "Can't you see that I'm busy?" Julia wasn't sure anyone could miss it, provided they weren't blind.

"I'm sorry," Rashual apologized, "but Andy and I were talking for a minute and it looks like Takimura hung himself with his tie somehow."

Julia's jaw dropped. "He killed himself?"

Ross became angry. He menacingly leaned forward. "What's wrong with you? Just great! What are we supposed to do with a dead hostage?"

"No, this will do just fine," Mello said.

"So what are we gonna do, Mello?" Ross asked.

"I'll tell you what we're gonna do. We're gonna kidnap Soichiro Yagami's daughter, Sayu Yagami."

* * *

"Yeah, bye," Julia heard Mello saying as she climbed the stairs to their bedroom. She had been sitting downstairs until Andrew Miller came in, and that was her cue to go to bed. She had to dodge him at the stairs before he trapped her against the wall. She was actually starting to be more than aggravated. He was a strong guy and his new hobby of coming onto her was not okay.

"Who was that?" Julia asked, though she already knew the answer. He didn't talk on the phone much, and it was most always Halle Lidner when he did. She was his inside source into Near's investigation, and so was a valuable resource to him. Julia hated the fact that she always felt jealous of this, but she couldn't control the feeling. The fact that Mello had another woman helping him, and possibly playing a more important role than Julia, was aggravating.

"Lidner," Mello replied, glancing up at her. He was sitting on the chair in front of the telephone, leaning back into it comfortably. His expression didn't change as he observed her, but he knew by the look on her face that the phone call bothered her. He'd been aware of her feelings for him for a while, not that he'd ever let on to the fact that he knew. It wasn't hard to figure out though. He grabbed the chocolate on the table in front of him and bit it loudly before continuing. "Just checking up on the competition."

"And have you thought out this plan?" Julia wondered, knowing he very well hadn't. "You're sure kidnapping Sayu Yagami is going to get you what you need to defeat Near?"

"With the notebook I will have what I need to beat Near and bring down Kira." He sounded confident and bitter, and Julia knew there was no point in arguing with him. He was driven by emotions, and talking him out of things was always difficult.

"Well, I don't want any part of it," Julia said, heading to her bed and sitting down. "That girl doesn't deserve any of the horrors that you and those sleaze bags are going to thrust on her. The worst part is that she's just a pawn. It doesn't really matter what happens to her as long as you get the notebook, right?"

"Jules, you always say that."

"What?" Julia asked, crossing her arms.

"That you don't want any part of it."

"Well I don't," Julia shrugged. "It's awful."

"So…you're not going to help me?" Mello asked, eyeing her curiously. Julia sighed as she looked up at him. His eyes were set on hers, and she mentally cursed to herself. She knew she would be right there, standing by as this poor girl was kidnapped, and all because Mello wanted her to. She couldn't say no to him; it was her one true weakness.

"Goodnight," Julia finally said, choosing to end the conversation. Mello smirked as he chomped another bite of chocolate. He knew she would help him out if he asked her to. Knowing her feelings for him didn't really help this, and he found he could easily get her to stay if he wanted. Her presence wasn't really needed, but he did find that he liked having her around for whatever reason. He snapped off another piece of chocolate with his teeth as his mind wandered off to thoughts of his goal.

* * *

"You awake?" Julia asked quietly through the silence. It was well into the hours of the morning and Julia was lying comfortably on her small bed. Mello was across the room, claiming the couch for himself.

"Yeah, why?" Mello asked.

"Just wondering," she replied.

"Well that's a stupid reason."

Julia sighed. "Hey Mello, do you think Takimura's death was Kira's doing? I've been thinking that all day and it would make sense. He wouldn't want the notebook to fall into the wrong hands."

"Actually, I was thinking the same thing," Mello replied thoughtfully. "Which is why I thought my next hostage should be Sayu Yagami. It seems to me that Kira might actually be involved with the task force. If that's the case, we should kidnap someone close to them so they won't be able to kill them so easily and take the notebook. Then I'll finally be able to beat Near."

Julia sat up in her bed to get a better look at him. He was sitting up and staring out the window, still in his day clothes. He seemed completely lost in thought about something.

The brunette got up from her bed and made her way across the room where she sat next to the blonde. He looked at her curiously, wondering what she was doing.

"You're never gonna let this thing with Near go, are you?" Julia asked. She knew he hated him for always beating him in everything. They were total opposites, from what Julia knew of him, but that's not really a reason to hate someone with a passion.

Mello sighed. "You just don't understand." He clenched his fist tightly as he remembered his time back at the damned orphanage. "No matter how hard I try, I can never beat him. I always come in second place. Do you have any idea how shitty that feels?"

Julia thought on what he said. Yes, it did feel awful, not that Mello knew she could relate. Ever since she realized her feelings for him, she wanted nothing more than for him to acknowledge them and care for her back. But she knew that would never happen. She would be doomed to fall second place to beating Kira and therefore defeating Near, which was Mello's top priority. And even though she was well aware of that fact, it didn't diminish her feelings.

Julia placed a hand on his arm. "You and Near are completely different people, so it seems unfair to compare the two of you. And as far as I'm concerned, Near comes second place to you."

Mello stared at her for a few moments before looking down at her hand that was still on his arm. She followed his gaze and realized what he was staring at. When she looked back up to meet his eyes, he was staring back with an intensity that shocked Julia. It felt like he was gazing into her soul and she was drawn by that look. Before she realized what she was doing, she leaned forward and placed her lips on his. Once the contact was made she thought for sure he would push her away. Mello surprised her however when he reciprocated the soft kiss. It wasn't pushy or rough. It was perfect. The way she always envisioned her first kiss with him to be.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you from Miller sooner," Mello said, once he pulled away. "I don't like how that guy treats you."

Julia scoffed. "Join the club. He's such a sleaze."

Julia looked up and saw that Mello was looking at her again.

"Do you ever miss it? When it was just the two of us, I mean," Julia asked. "When we didn't have to worry about these stupid Mafia people and having hostages? I know it's important for you to have the notebook and everything, which is important for me as well, but I wish we could just go back to when it was simple and we could be friends again."

"Jules, we're still friends," Mello said, unsure of where she was going with this reminiscent moment.

"Right…" Julia trailed off vaguely.

Mello didn't say anything in response to that. He then turned back to the window, which he and Julia gazed out of silently until the both of them finally fell asleep.


	4. Trade

**Chapter 4: Trade**

Mello woke up with the feeling that something heavy was on top of him. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that he was laying chest up on the couch and that Julia was sleeping comfortably on him. Her head was nestled underneath his chin as her arm wrapped around his waist protectively.

They must have just fallen asleep like this after their late night talk. Mello wasn't exactly sure how that happened but he couldn't complain. He liked the feel of having Julia so close to him. She looked innocent as she slept and Mello had to stop himself from brushing her hair away from her face. Instead, he grabbed onto Julia's wrist and moved it so he could get out. He gently placed her back on the couch where she continued sleeping. He contemplated waking her up but figured it'd be fine if she slept in a little longer. She wouldn't like what they were doing today anyway.

Julia rolled over on her bed only to fall off it. She squeaked in surprise as her back collided with the floor painfully, and she realized she wasn't even in her bed. She had been sleeping on the couch the entire night. With Mello.

Julia sat up quickly, but was downhearted to see that Mello was no longer there. He must have left earlier. Julia groaned as she pushed herself up off the floor and made her way downstairs to where the men were sure to be after she made herself presentable.

They were discussing something and Julia was suddenly curious. "What's going on?"

Mello looked up at her. "Today is the day we kidnap Sayu Yagami."

"We got her," Rashual said, walking into the main room where Mello was sitting comfortably on the couch, along with Julia, Ross, Miller, and a few other Mafia members. Mello's legs were spread apart casually and his arms were slung over the back of the couch. A bar of chocolate hung loosely from the fingers closest to Julia, who looked out the door to see Sayu being dragged forcefully by the few members of the Mafia who were carrying her to where she would be held. A pained expression crossed Julia's face as she saw the fear on Sayu's face before a man pulled her roughly by the arm and out of sight.

"Yeah, you know where she goes," Mello said, snapping a piece of chocolate off the bar.

"What's the matter with you?" Rashual asked Julia, watching at her with an amused expression. "You scared? We didn't hurt her…much."

"You're disgusting," Julia muttered under her breath as Miller reached a hand toward her leg.

"Oh hey, I'll protect you," he laughed. Julia shoved it away and stood up.

"I'm outta here," she announced, mostly to Mello, before marching up the stairs.

"You need to stop acting like such a girl," Mello informed Julia as he stepped into their room, slinging himself onto the couch.

"Yeah well, I am a girl," Julia told him. "And this isn't about acting scared or whatever you think 'acting like a girl' means. This is about the fact that those nasty men are probably down there scaring that poor girl for fun, and the fact that you're standing by like this whole event is no big deal."

"I said I would do whatever's necessary," Mello shrugged, glancing toward her. "You should have been paying more attention." Julia glared at him before turning around facing the window, done with this conversation.

* * *

Later that night, Julia was lying in the bed pretending to be sleeping but was actually wide awake. Mello was obviously awake too, as Julia could hear him wandering the room and snapping the chocolate with his teeth. The phone rang, and Julia heard his footsteps walk over to pick it up.

"Yeah?" he said. "Just leave her in there for the exchange. Tomorrow will be the day we get the notebook." Mello made a few more grunting sounds to the person on the other end, whom Julia assumed to be a Mafia member, before clicking the phone on the hook and returning to the couch.

Julia felt sick. They were just going to keep her in that tiny glass revolving door contraption that would be used for the exchange. She doubted anyone had even bothered to feed her or even see if she was alright. And after about another hour of thinking, Julia decided she couldn't stand it any longer. She rolled over slowly to see that Mello was asleep on the couch, his arms slung off the side loosely, still clutching the chocolate bar. Then, before she could talk herself out of it, Julia sat up.

She crept across the room quickly, making sure not to make a sound. She knew that if Mello were to find out what she was doing, he would undoubtedly get mad or, at the very least, hold it against her later. For that reason she almost didn't go, but she couldn't stand it any longer. She closed the door silently behind herself and disappeared down the hall.

"Jules…" Mello groaned to himself once she was out of the room. He knew exactly where she was going. She was too weak to handle the situation, or at least that's how it appeared to him. Sometimes he figured it would be better if she wasn't there with him, but he never dwelled too much on those thoughts. He wanted her there, weak or not. He wasn't so sure why though.

"Sayu…?" Julia wondered, creeping through the darkness into the area where the exchange would be made. She had managed to make it there without getting caught, and she was thankful to see that whoever was supposed to be watching the place wasn't doing a very good job. In the room was the bulletproof box that would make the exchange, and inside was Sayu Yagami. She was sitting on the floor inside her small space, her head hung so that only her brown hair was visible. She didn't look up at Julia's words, and she figured that she couldn't hear her. Julia crept closer and leaned her head toward the small rectangular opening.

"Sayu Yagami?" she asked. Sayu's head snapped up, and she instantly started shaking. Julia held her hands out in front of her to show she meant no harm. "I'm not gonna hurt you," Julia explained.

"Can you let me out?" Sayu asked quickly, looking hopeful. "Please?" Julia hesitated. She knew that she could probably find a way to get her out of here, but her mind snapped to Mello. He would never forgive her for that. It would ruin his entire plan, and Julia knew that would anger him more than anything right now, especially since he was sure he was inches away from beating Near.

But then she thought of the girl before her. If something happened to her tomorrow, and she were to get hurt, or even die, would it be Julia's fault for not letting her out? She tossed back and forth the repercussions of possibly letting her go, but finally decided against it. If it was anyone else's will, she wouldn't have hesitated, but since it was Mello's, she couldn't.

"I'm sorry…" Julia finally said. Sayu's face grew fearful again as her hope was shattered.

"Are you…are you with those men?" she asked, now shaking again.

"Do you need water?" Julia asked ignoring the question she didn't really want to answer. "Or something to eat?"

"No," Sayu answered. "I just want to go home…"

"I know," Julia said in as comforting a tone as she could manage. "But tomorrow…your dad will come and…"

"My dad?" Sayu asked quickly. "He can't come here! They'll kill him. How do you know that he's coming? Who are you?" Julia struggled with what to say in response. Sayu was obviously frightened, and the fact that she had no idea what was going on didn't help.

"I-" Julia began before a noise caught her attention. She snapped her head in that direction before turning back to Sayu. "I have to go…I'm sorry…" She didn't know who that might be, but she wasn't going to wait and find out.

"Wait!" Sayu whispered frantically after her, but Julia was already up and out the door. And as she made her way back upstairs and tiptoed past Mello, who was truly asleep this time, she couldn't help but think that was the worst idea she'd ever had. She felt even worse for Sayu now and guilty on top of that. Tomorrow was definitely not going to be easy.

* * *

"Here," Julia said, passing Mello the microphone halfheartedly. This marked the beginning of the part of the plan that would actually get them the notebook, and Julia had to resist the urge to vomit. Sayu was downstairs at that very moment, probably even more terrified from when Julia had seen her, and Mello was about to give Mr. Yagami his instructions.

"Yagami," Mello said into it once he took it from her. Mr. Yagami was apparently given a wireless earpiece in which Mello would feed him directions. "Right now, you're the only one who can hear my voice. Listen very carefully. I'm the one who kidnapped your daughter," He opened his chocolate as he said this, and Julia couldn't help but think it only added to his casualness over the situation. "But don't get the wrong idea," he continued. "I have no interest in your daughter's life one way or the other, or yours for that matter. There's only one thing I want, and you know what that is. The notebook. Now all you have to do is follow my instructions. If you do that, no one has to die. As for the trade, I've prepared things so that both of us can walk away satisfied. Play along and there will be no problems." He took away the microphone for a moment and looked to Julia. She was the only one with him at the moment, but she knew the other men she hated would be in soon to watch what happened.

"How are you feeling?" Julia asked with a raised eyebrow, more as an accusation of his casual appearance.

"All's going as planned," Mello half smirked, taking a bite of his chocolate.

"You see the entrance, don't you Yagami?" Mello was saying into the microphone to Mr. Yagami. "Go inside." Mr. Yagami was dropped off by the airplane and was now on his way inside to see his daughter. Julia was scared when Ross and a few other Mafia men came in carrying a laptop, but was relieved to see that she wouldn't have to watch what was happening. The computer was apparently for surveillance of the helicopter that would come later. Someone was monitoring the scene, and Julia tried to block everything from her mind. Mello's voice cut through her concentration a few minutes later.

"Alright Y462, proceed," Mello instructed. Julia waited as the exchange began, thankful that she could only hear what was going on and not actually see it. She gasped, however, when she heard the plan to test it.

"You're going to kill someone?" she whispered to Mello, who looked over to her, biting his chocolate.

"We have to test it," Mello said. "I'm not gonna lose to Near by making such a simple mistake." Julia was about to open her mouth to speak when Miller collapsed onto the ground, clutching his heart. Mello and Ross didn't even flinch as a few men ran over to him.

"What's wrong? You okay Miller?" one of them asked. Julia's eyes widened as she realized he had been the test. As much as she hated Miller, this scared her tremendously. She knew the Notebook had this power, but to see it personally was horrifying. Apparently, she was the only one concerned as Ross spoke.

"Look, that's what you get when you steal from me and sell goods behind my back. He was a worthless idiot. This is the first time he's been useful." Julia looked at him with her mouth hanging open. The thought that he could just kill someone on his own team so easily was unnerving. She couldn't help but think that she wasn't that useful herself, and she suddenly wondered if Ross had ever thought of getting rid of her.

"Y462, the target is dead," Someone informed the man making the exchange with Mr. Yagami as Mello took another bite of his candy. Julia listened a moment as the exchange was made, and despite everything she was relieved that at least Sayu made it out alive. She wasn't sure what to make of the fact that Mello would soon possess the notebook. She just wasn't sure what he was planning to do.

* * *

Julia sat in her and Mello's room later that night, feeling quite uneasy. The notebook had been delivered by missile to a deserted location, and the helicopter that was used to throw the competition off their trail had exploded, even after Ross assured the pilot that his help with the helicopter would clear up his past mistakes. Apparently not, as Ross had ordered the members to blow up the helicopter without hesitation. Julia realized just how easy it was for Ross to get rid of people, even if they were members of their own team.

"Ross is gonna kill me," Julia told Mello as he entered the room, carrying the notebook that had been hand delivered to him. "Not now, but one day. Just because he can."

"No he won't," Mello said, sitting down at the small table in the room, placing the notebook in front of him. "He wouldn't kill you without my permission, and I'm not gonna kill you so there, you're safe." Julia paused for a moment, watching him look over the notebook casually.

"And why exactly do you want to keep me alive?" Julia inquired. "I just get in your way, don't I?"

"Most of the time," Mello responded, not bothering to answer her other question. Really, he didn't have an answer to that one.

"What's with the notebook?" Julia asked hesitantly. "You're not going to write in it are you?"

"No," Mello said. "I'm not risking the thirteen day rule. I'm just keeping it safe. The last thing I need is for it to fall into the wrong hands when I'm so close. I'm going to keep it with me unless we need to use it."

"Oh, so you really are planning on using that thing then?" Julia questioned him. She hadn't been sure what his plans were, and part of her didn't even want to know.

"Yes, we're going to use it," Mello answered. "I already had Snyder write in it for me."

"_Already_?" Julia gasped. "Mello…that's…did you even stop and think-? That's murdering people!"

"Whatever means necessary," he said roughly. "How many times do I gotta explain it to you?"

"Well, who did he write down?" she asked after another moment.

"We're just eliminating some of the competition," Mello told her vaguely. Julia rolled her eyes and stood up, heading over the desk where he sat. She leaned over his shoulder and glanced at the open page and the names that were scribbled on it. It was just as she expected. Members of the SPK.

"Nice Mello," she said in a repulsed voice. She waited a moment before asking her next question. "No Halle Lidner?"

"She's helping me out," Mello said. "Of course I'm not going to have her killed."

"Oh, then she and I have something in common," Julia said smartly, turning back for her bed and shutting the light off as she went. "You seem to have no problem murdering people now, innocent or not. We're so lucky that you're sparing our lives."

"Who says they were innocent?" Mello said through the dark. She could hear him crossing the room, headed for his couch. She figured he was probably cradling the notebook in his arms now; a new precious possession that would undoubtedly push her one spot further back in the race for his affections.

"I can tell you Near's team probably deserved to die a lot less than the disgusting people you work with," she continued bitterly. "But congratulations, it looks like you've got the better team now, seeing as you actually have one that's still standing."

"You just don't understand," Mello told her as she rolled to face the area his voice was coming from. "This is the only way to defeat Near."

"Right," Julia sighed, rubbing her head. The fact that Mello was going to such extremes was really bothering her. Ever since he teamed up with the Mafia, the 'any means necessary' rule was becoming very much a norm. He was willing to do anything to beat Near, and that much was obvious.

What wasn't obvious was why Julia was so willing to stand by him in all this. Stealing, kidnapping, murder…she stood by it all just hoping for his approval. And as she drifted off to sleep, she knew that tomorrow would be no different.


	5. Shinigami

**Chapter 5: Shinigami**

Julia watched as Mello held the Death Note in his hands triumphantly. She couldn't believe how that little thing brought so much pleasure to him, especially since it was so evil.

"The next step is for me to figure out just how much I can control people with this thing," Mello stated.

Julia rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "And you really need to go that far with the notebook?"

Mello turned to retaliate, but the notebook was suddenly snatched out of his hands and flew across the room where it landed on Snyder's head. Mello and Julia watched it in awe, as no one had touched it.

"The uh…the notebook just flew…" Mello said obviously.

Ross, who was sitting with two prostitutes this time, scoffed at the blonde. He was shirtless again and Julia didn't even want to acknowledge the existence of the women in the room.

"It's a notebook that kills people," Ross stated. "Hell, nothing surprises me anymore."

"That's true…" Julia said quietly.

Suddenly, Snyder began screaming, falling to the floor in fright. His sudden actions caused Julia to jump. What was wrong with him?

Snyder looked absolutely terrified now. "Boss! Who is this? The guy in the freaky costume! Who the hell is he? Who brought him here?" He was silent for a moment and Mello and Julia exchanged confused glances. "A Shinigami?" Snyder asked the air. He then began laughing nervously like he was afraid he was going to lose his mind. Julia already thought he did. He was paused again before he lifted up the Death Note and held it out for everyone else. "He says you can see him if you touch the notebook! Please, everyone touch it! I swear I'm not crazy!"

Ross groaned. "Fine, whatever. C'mon guys."

All the members of the Mafia, Mello included, reached out and touched the notebook quickly. Julia was the last one to lay a hand on it and she did so hesitantly, unsure of whether or not she really wanted to see if a Shinigami was real. She figured gods of death were creepy as hell, and she really didn't need nightmares.

The headquarters was filled with loud screams as everyone came face to face with a Shinigami. It had a round face with yellow and red eyes that stared at everyone with boredom. Its hands were skeletal and it had long yellow teeth protruding from its mouth. Julia grabbed onto Mello's arm, frightened.

The other men were just as surprised and brought out their guns, shooting toward the monster. Julia covered her head as to not be shot by the rain of bullets. Mello saw this and wrapped his arms around her so that if she were to be hit, Mello would be the one taking the bullet.

Once the gunfire had stopped, they all stared in shock. It was still standing, completely unharmed.

"Nice try," it said. "You humans can't kill a Shinigami."

Ross was the first one to speak. "Jack's right. That ain't no costume. That's a real life Shinigami. So now what do we do?"

* * *

Julia just couldn't stop staring at that disgusting thing. The Shinigami, Sidoh, had just told them about the notebook and all its rules. He had even explained about the Shinigami Eyes, which allows the user to see the lifespan and name of any person at the price of half of their remaining life span. Mello quickly told Snyder to make the deal and so he did. Apparently Julia wasn't the only one who would do anything Mello asked.

As a sign of gratitude, Mello handed Sidoh a bar of chocolate. The Shinigami was cautious at first, but after its first bite, it was suddenly chowing down. "Chocolate is so good…" he said dreamily.

"Hey! What about that stuff you told us?" Ross asked from behind the couch. The others were near him, still surprised by the presence of the death god. "Is it true? If the person using the note fails to consecutively write names of people to be killed within thirteen days of each other, then the user will die. If you make this note unusable by tearing it up or burning it, all the humans who have touched the note till then shall die. Are you saying those two rules are made up?"

"Oh yeah," Sidoh told them. "Those rules are definitely fake. My guess is that some Shinigami wrote those rules as a joke before giving the notebook to a human."

"Do Shinigami usually like playing tricks on humans like that?" Julia asked.

"Well, we're bored all the time so this gives us a laugh every once in a while."

"And why would a Shinigami drop a Death Note into the human world to begin with? Especially since it's so dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands?" Julia inquired. She didn't like anything about the black notebook, but had to find out all the details about it that she could. It seemed like this would be the best opportunity, having a Shinigami there with them.

Mello cut in before Sidoh could say anything. "Sidoh, go keep watch outside. It'll be very convenient for us that you can't be seen by humans. Go outside and keep watch, got it?"

Julia shuddered at his tone. Mello sure knew how to be scary when he wanted to be, and judging by the look on the Shinigami's face, she was sure he agreed too.

* * *

Julia had to admit, it was nicer not having Andrew Miller around. She didn't exactly wish his death on him but it was easier without having that sleazebag feeling up on her every chance he got.

She was sitting next to Mello, who was preoccupied at the moment, looking at the small screens in front of him. Surveillance cameras had been set up to keep an eye out on everything, especially since Mello now had the Death Note in his possession.

Sidoh could be seen on one of the screens, standing watch outside. He was definitely an unusual Shinigami; not at all what Julia was expecting. He was creepy at first, being a death god and everything, but once he got talking and his whiny voice was heard, he seemed harmless and not the least bit threatening. Julia even thought he was somewhat annoying.

"Jules," Mello said, not even looking at her. "What are your thoughts on the fake rules?"

"Hmm?" Julia furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at the random question. She hadn't actually put much thought into it and was unsure of what to think now. "I don't know. I wasn't really thinking about it. The Shinigami freaked me out too much. Why?"

"I think it was originally Kira's notebook," Mello told her.

This peaked Julia's interest. "Kira's notebook?"

Mello nodded and finally faced the brunette. "Think about it. The rules in the notebook are fake. No other Death Note has these fake rules, which leads me to believe that these rules were written to maybe prove their innocence for whatever reason. Specifically the thirteen day rule. That would be able to prove Kira's innocence in only thirteen days."

Julia processed all this information. She had to admit, the way Mello's mind worked was amazing. She never would have even thought of that possibility. "I see…"

"I need to make a phone call," he said suddenly standing up. He began heading towards the stairs to his room and a sour look crossed her features.

"Let me guess," Julia started. "You're gonna talk to Lidner again, right? What new information could she possibly tell you? You just talked to her last night."

"I wanna see if Near's had any progress," Mello stated. "And green isn't necessarily your best color, Jules."

Julia crossed her arms in front of her chest in a huff. "I'll have you know, green looks amazing on me!" she retorted. She knew what he really meant and that hurt more than just an insult to her wardrobe. What did Lidner have that she didn't?...besides beauty, brains, and Mello's complete attention.

Julia groaned. Halle Lidner was definitely a better woman than Julia was, even though she didn't want to admit it. She wasn't going to give up though. She was determined to win Mello's affections once and for all!

But first, she was going to give Mello an icy cold shoulder for a few days.

* * *

A few days later, Julia still refused to speak with Mello. He was making it rather difficult, but she wasn't going to cave. He needed to realize that he would be lonely without her.

It was just a normal day in the Mafia hideout. Nothing special whatsoever.

Sudden screams brought Julia out of her "revenge for Mello" thoughts, and she realized that they were the Mafia members crying out in pain. They grabbed onto their chests before collapsing one by one. Only three other members, excluding Julia and Mello, were still alive.

Julia placed a hand over her mouth in shock. "What the-?" She ran to the closest guy to her and felt for a pulse. There was none. "He's dead…"

Mello snapped off a piece of chocolate angrily. "It looks like Kira's involved after all." He then turned to the surveillance screen and saw Sidoh standing there.

"If anyone was around, shouldn't Sidoh have warned us?" Julia asked. "He was our freaking lookout!"

"Worthless Shinigami…" Mello mumbled. He then jumped from the couch and grabbed onto Julia's hand. "We have to go." He pulled Julia behind him and he ran as fast as he could upstairs. While running, he noticed the Death Note under the now deceased Mafia leader. "Roy, Skyer, the notebook's under Rod's body. Bring it to the surveillance room upstairs."

He continued running, dragging Julia with him to safety. She could hear gunshots, and since Mello was being extra protective over the notebook, she figured that's what the intruders were there for. Could they be working for Near?

The surveillance room was straight ahead, but Mello took a sharp left. There was a door there that had a secret exit out of the hideout. She figured they were both taking it, but after Mello pushed her slightly, he made to head towards the surveillance room.

Julia grabbed onto his wrist before he could leave. "Where are you going?" she asked frantically.

Mello groaned. "Jules don't give me any of that. Just go. Get out of the building." He dug into his pocket and handed Julia what looked like a motel room key. "I almost forgot…" Mello mumbled. He shoved the key into Julia's hand and stared her in the eyes. "After you get out of here, go straight to that motel and I'll meet up with you once I get out of here."

Julia shook her head. "I'm not leaving you! Please, just come with me!"

Mello looked back in the direction they had just come from. He was sure the intruders were on their way there already and he needed to get Julia out of there fast. Who knew what would happen if she were caught? They would probably torture her for the whereabouts of the notebook or information on himself. That couldn't happen.

He placed his hand on the back of her head and pulled her roughly into him, crashing his lips on hers. Julia was in complete shock. Her eyes were wide open and she couldn't believe what was happening. Just before she was able to kiss him back the way she wanted to, he pulled away quickly.

"Jules, go," he said. He then took the opportunity of her shock and left her, making his way to the surveillance room.

Julia could feel her cheeks burning. She heard footsteps nearing her and quickly opened the door and made her way out of the hideout, just as Mello had wanted.

Once she was out, she had barely made it from the scene when every available exit was blown up. That would make it nearly impossible to escape, and Julia stared wide-eyed at the scene, wondering what Mello was planning.

She so desperately wanted to go back in to make sure he was alright, but she knew she had to keep going. Mello had told her to go, and so she would.

* * *

Hours passed, and Mello still hadn't come to the motel room like he said he would. Julia was worried as she paced the room in silence, coming to the worst possible conclusions of what had happened to the blonde.

He could have been shot, or blown up, or maybe arrested.

Julia groaned in frustration. She was just being paranoid. Mello was probably just fine, handling everything perfectly like he always did.

Julia still couldn't seem to shake that uneasy feeling.

Finally, a knock on the door made her heart hammer against her chest. Was it Mello? Had he finally come back in one piece? Julia rushed to the door, eager to make sure he was alright. She thrust the door open and gasped when she saw the man in front of her. It was Mello, but half of his face was badly burned and he looked beaten. He leaned his arm against the doorframe, barely able to hold himself up anymore.

"Mello? What the hell happened?" Julia asked fearfully. She grabbed onto his other arm and tried to support him as they made their way to the bed. He lay down without any hesitation, and in the light Julia could see the extent of his injury. The burn covered half of his face and it still looked fresh and painful. She didn't know what to do. "Mello, I have to get you to the hospital."

Julia got up from his side and made to walk toward the phone. Mello stopped her however.

"No, I don't need it," he told her.

Julia looked at him incredulously. "Are you joking? Half of your face is freaking burned off and you don't want to go to the hospital? Are you crazy? You might need to get some skin grafted."

"No. It'll heal eventually."

"What is the matter with you?"

"Jules, they have my name…and the notebook…"

The scowl on Julia's face fell when she realized what he had just said. They knew his name… "How is that possible? I've been with you for two years and _I_ don't even know your name."

"Soichiro Yagami had the Shinigami eyes," Mello explained. "He saw my name and managed to get the notebook." Julia's eyes widened as Mello continued with his story. "Jose shot him down, but then the other task force members joined in. I had no choice but to blow up the building."

Now Julia understood. He had done it to give himself the chance to escape. "You could have been killed," she sighed.

"But I wasn't," Mello said curtly.

Julia nodded slowly. "So what do we do now? All the Mafia members are dead."

"I have an old friend who can help us. But first, I'm going to see Near. He has something I need."

Julia didn't bother to ask what it was that he needed from Near. She had to stop pestering Mello with questions when he needed to heal. Besides, she would be accompanying him anyway, whether he liked it or not. "I'll be right back," she said. "I'll see what I can bring you for that burn."

She got up and headed for the door. Before making her way out, she said, "I'm glad you're okay." She paused to see if he'd say anything back, but he didn't so she kept walking in disappointment.

Mello lay still on the bed, waiting for Julia to return. He was enduring the pain in silence, mostly because he couldn't let a little burn distract him from his goals.

His fists clenched tightly. "Damn it!" he yelled out loud. How could things have gone so wrong? His plan was supposed to be perfect! Soichiro Yagami having the Shinigami eyes and Sidoh, the pathetic Shinigami, ruined the entire plan. Now what was he going to do? Without the notebook, it seemed like he was back at square one.

There was also the issue with Julia. For whatever reason, he felt like he needed to get Julia out of there as fast as possible, and he had thought that the kiss was the best way to do it. More for his own protection than hers really. If she had been captured, they could have easily tortured her for information on him. That thought alone caused his blood to boil.

Julia came back into the room, a container of medicine in her hand and a pained expression on her face. She marched straight into the bathroom, getting a rag and running it through with cool water. She made her way back to Mello and looked down at him.

"I asked around to find out how to treat a burn and they said it depended on the severity," Julia explained. "Yours needs medical attention or it could lead to infection. Please Mello, let me take you to the hospital or something."

"No, Jules," he responded. "I can't go. If you can't take care of me, then fine."

Julia sighed. "I figured you would say that. I'm supposed to put cool water on it. I'm not sure if this'll hurt or not." She placed the wet rag and the burned side of Mello's face. He didn't flinch or make any indication of pain, so she didn't know what to think. "And I brought you some medicine for the pain."

"Thanks."

Julia sat next to him on the bed, and he rested with the wet rag over his face. She sighed quietly, hating the awful timing of his injury. Mello had kissed her just a few hours ago and she wanted nothing more than for him to revel in his sudden affections for her. And she wanted to tell him how she felt about him as well. Maybe when he was starting to feel better would be when she would make her move.


	6. Near

**Chapter 6: Near**

"Mello, where are you going?" Julia said. He had stood up and was headed for the door of the motel room, grabbing his furry jacket as he went.

"I already told you I need to see Near," Mello said, pulling his arms through the sleeves. "He has something of mine."

"And you're going to, what, point the gun at his head?" Julia wondered as Mello grabbed his weapon and shoved it under the belt of his pants.

"Hm, maybe," Mello chuckled. "But no this is actually for Lidner." Julia furrowed her eyebrows.

"Getting rid of her?" she wondered hopefully, though she didn't actually want Mello to go out and shoot someone.

"Not exactly," Mello smirked. Julia was curious now, and so she stood up and grabbed her coat as well.

"What are you doing?" Mello asked her.

"I'm coming with you," she told him, reaching for the door. Mello stepped in front of her, shaking his head.

"No, I'm going alone. I don't need you there getting in the way."

"Of what? You and Lidner?"

"Among other things," he said, eyeing her expression. He was hoping the idea of Lidner would drive her away. After kissing her, Mello was starting to doubt his decision. It wasn't the first time they had kissed but now he could see that Julia had been acting different. Not to anyone else, but Mello saw it. A slight hope in her eyes that maybe the two of them could be together.

Julia ignored his comment and swung the door open, nearly hitting him with it. He glared at her from behind his bangs, and she shot him a look.

"I'm coming," she said. "Or I'm not letting you leave." Mello scoffed, but gave in to her demands. He had better things to do then stand here and argue with her.

"What the hell are you doing?" Julia demanded, grabbing his arm as he headed through Halle Lidner's small apartment, toward the bathroom where she was obviously taking a shower.

"See?" he snapped. "You're already getting in the way." Julia threw his arm down and crossed hers.

"I'm sure she'd appreciate it if you at least waited for her to come out of the damn shower."

"According to you," Mello said, but he didn't continue toward the bathroom. Instead he stood there and grabbed his gun, waiting. Julia just looked at him from the corner of his eye. Why did he make all those offhand comments about Lidner? Probably just to get to her. She didn't understand him. He kissed her, and yet now he acted as though nothing had happened. The first time they kissed, she had initiated it so she didn't expect much from it which was why she had never mentioned it again. This time, he had kissed her, which meant something. It pissed her off that he was acting so nonchalant now, and she was determined to kiss him again to see what would happen.

Finally, footsteps led from the room and Lidner appeared, a white towel wrapped around her torso and her hair dripping wet. Mello already had his gun drawn on her as Lidner spoke. "So you're alive." She glanced curiously at Julia as Mello bit his chocolate. She kept quiet, however, as Mello swung his gun toward her bedroom.

"Get dressed," he ordered, "You're coming with me." He quite obviously looked her up and down when she turned away, and Julia clenched her fist. Mello smiled just the slightest to himself. He was pretty sure it was working.

* * *

"Mello, welcome," the boy named Near said as Mello walked in the room, holding the gun to Lidner. Julia walked in behind them, setting her sights for the first time on Near. She was caught off guard by how bizarre he looked. Sure, Mello didn't always have the best sense of fashion, but Near was beyond that. He looked as though he was wearing some type of pajamas, and his hair was white. He was crouched on the floor, playing with toys. _This_ was the guy Mello always lost to?

"Drop your weapon!" A big blonde man that Julia didn't know commanded, whipping out his gun. Julia heard Mello groan beside her before Near spoke again.

"Everyone, please put away your guns. Having a shoot out here would achieve nothing." Well, at least he appeared to be reasonable. Julia could see why he and Mello didn't get along already. Near was the total opposite of the blonde beside her, obviously completely calm in all situations whereas Mello was driven by how he felt. The competition to succeed L surely didn't help their relationship.

"Sir, with all due respect, Mello is the one who killed our partners," an attractive dark haired man informed the white haired boy.

"Please don't make me say it again. Remember that our primary objective is still to catch Kira. Killing Mello right now would do nothing to benefit our investigation." At his words, both men on his team reluctantly lowered their guns.

"Hmm, alright," the blonde one said grudgingly.

"It seems like things have been going just as you planned Near," Mello said, still holding the gun to Lidner. Julia almost smiled. Even if Mello had some type of feelings for this woman, he sure as hell didn't have a problem using her to get what he wanted. For a moment, Julia thought that this was probably the same with her, but Near brought her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, I take it you've already heard all about the second L from Lidner by now. I've pretty much figured out who Kira is and it's thanks to everything you've done." Mello was looking pissed now, and Julia bit her lip nervously, knowing he was about to overreact. As if to prove her right, Mello didn't hesitate in whipping out his gun and pointing it directly at Near. The two men on his team instantly pulled their guns out again.

"_Shut up Near_!" Mello yelled. "I'm not just a tool for you to use in order to solve your puzzles you know!"

"Mello, if you really wanna shoot me, then go ahead and do it," Near said calmly. Julia looked to Mello and knew he was struggling. He wanted to, that was certain, but his hand shook and he couldn't. Or at least that was what Julia hoped. Lidner jumped in front of him before Mello could prove himself.

"Stop!" she yelled. "If you shoot him, then the rest of us will have no choice but to shoot you too! What would it solve if both of you die?"

"Hmm, you have a good point," Mello admitted. Julia rolled her eyes at yet another example of his failure to think things through. "Anyway I'm only here for one thing. I came to take back that photograph you have."

"Of course," Near agreed. "I got it from the orphanage. It was only one and no copies have been made. I've already gone ahead and dealt with everyone who knows your face, both inside and outside of Wammy's house. They'll keep quiet." Julia couldn't help but wonder what he had done to the poor people as Near flicked the photo from his hands. Mello caught it between his fingers effortlessly before Near continued. "I can't say one hundred percent for certain but it shouldn't be possible for you to be killed by the notebook. Is that the only business you had with me Mello?"

"Near…let's get one thing straight. I have no intention of working together with you on this," Mello informed him.

"Yes I know."

"At the same time I can't just take my photo and leave. That wouldn't be right so I'll settle my debt. The killer Notebook, it belongs to a Shinigami. Anyone who touches it is able to see a god of death." Julia was confused. He wanted to beat Near so badly and yet here he was giving away information. She rolled her eyes, realizing he wanted the fight to be fair. He wanted to beat him on an even playing field. Moron…

"That's crazy," the blonde man commented.

"Who the hell would believe in something like that?" the other commented.

"I would," Near responded. Julia didn't like the fact that he refused to face people when he talked to them. It was weird. "I believe him completely. What good would it do for him to tell an outrageous lie like that? Even if he had something to gain he could at least come up with a more believable story. Therefore these gods of death must exist." Julia was glad he could believe it so easily. She had barely believed it until she had seen that disgusting thing for herself.

"The notebook I obtained had previously belonged to another Shinigami," Mello continued. "Perhaps even Kira himself. Also, some of the rules written inside are actually fake. That's all I can tell you for now." He turned and walked away, saying "Near" as he did so. Near responded with "Mello."

"Which of us is gonna reach Kira first, I wonder," Mello asked, biting his chocolate. Julia wanted to root for Mello, but Near was so calm, and it almost seemed like he would come out on top.

"The race is on," Near said.

"We're both heading towards the same destination. I'll be waiting for you." And with that, Mello left his rival behind.

* * *

"This is a cute picture," Julia commented as she gazed down at the picture that Mello had retrieved from Near earlier that night. It really wasn't that adorable, aside from the fact that he looked so young and innocent. Julia wondered if it was taken before this insane fight with Near began. Mello held his hand out to her and she handed it to him. He glanced at it for a moment before placing it in his pocket.

"So what's next?" Julia said. She was lounging on the couch, and Mello was standing nearby. He turned toward her as he spoke.

"I beat Near," he said. "We're in a fair race now and I intend to come out first."

"I should have known," Julia said. Mello sat down beside her and pulled out his chocolate, biting the corner off without hesitation.

"What I meant was, are we just staying in this motel room for a while?" Julia asked.

"I guess," Mello answered. "It's not like we really have anywhere else to go right now. As long as I'm getting work done I don't care where I'm at."

"Well I'll be here with you," Julia told him, glancing toward him. He met her gaze, and she found herself leaning towards him. She was nearly at his lips when Mello turned his head away.

"What are you doing?"

"Kissing you," Julia answered, still attempting to get close to him. "Trying to anyway."

"Don't," Mello said flatly. Julia groaned, and pushed his chest to distance the space between them.

"Well in that case," Julia said, not being one to keep her thoughts to herself if she could keep her nerve up. "Can I ask what the hell you kissed me for the other day then?"

"Can't you just drop it?" Mello asked.

"No, not really," Julia responded, much to Mello's annoyance. "You have to know how I feel about you by now." Mello just bit his chocolate, so Julia continued. "I want to be with you Mello. Why the hell do you think I stick around through all this shit?"

"Because I asked you to," Mello replied easily.

"Oh, so you _do_ know how I feel then," Julia said, nodding. "Using it to your advantage no doubt. There was no reason for you to kiss me, and it wasn't the most opportune moment either. Just admit that you felt something."

"It meant nothing," Mello said, taking another bite of his chocolate. "I had to get you out of there somehow." Julia had been preparing a response, but that last part caught her off guard

"You…?"

"Yeah," Mello said, standing up and heading for his bed. "So no, I didn't feel anything. It might be good if you try to do the same. My goal is to catch Kira, not form a relationship." That much was true. He didn't want to form a relationship by any means. That would be nothing but a distraction. Not feeling anything…that might have been a bend of the truth, but she didn't need to know that. All she needed to know was that he wasn't about to fall in love with her.

"I don't need a relationship," Julia shrugged. "But an honest answer might be nice. There had to have been more reason to kiss me like that."

"Think whatever the hell you want," Mello said, sitting down on his bed. Julia had been pretty calm, but she was starting to get upset.

"Goodnight," she said finally, heading to her own bed and lying down.

Mello shut off the light without returning the comment, and instead said "Damn, I forgot to call Lidner."

"Call her now," Julia shrugged. "She'll be up, or at least she would be for you." She said the last part bitterly, and Mello grinned to himself. She was definitely jealous, and that was perfect. If he played it out the right way, he could make him and Lidner seem somewhat involved, even if they never were or would be. But if Julia thought so, then maybe it would help her along in forgetting her feelings towards him.

"I'll just call her tomorrow when you're not around," Mello said, rolling over. Julia clenched her jaw. She didn't know what he was up to with that, but it pissed her off. And before she fell asleep, she promised herself that Mello would love her, no matter what it took.


	7. Trust

**Chapter 7: Trust**

"So who should I be looking for?" Julia wondered as she and Mello sat in the terminal of the airport, waiting for the old friend that Mello had spoken of. People were walking by causally, but the plane hadn't unloaded yet. "When they get off the plane, I mean."

"It's just Matt," Mello shrugged. "He's got like, brown hair and these goggles that he wears. Just sit there I'll find him when he comes out."

"Goggles?" Julia wondered. That was an odd fashion accessory, but then again Mello had a few interesting items in his closet. Julia, on the other hand, was feeling very confident about her outfit today. She'd been anxious to get out of the motel room and wear something girly for once, seeing as she never did that around the disgusting men of the Mafia. She hoped to go shopping soon to fill up her wardrobe, but for today she wore the one cute dress that she owned.

It was a green dress, with a white blouse-like top. A dark green ribbon tied around her ribs, and a matching ribbon made the neckline of the dress into a halter. Dark buttons led down the front of the green skirt, which billowed out loosely to Julia's knees. She sat with her legs crossed, and turned to Mello with a slight smile.

"I look hot today, don't I?" Julia asked. "Still gonna deny that you feel something for me?" Mello glanced at her from the corner of his eye as he bit a piece of his chocolate. She did look good, but he wasn't about to tell her that. He didn't have to reply, however, as the passengers of the plane began to flood the terminal.

"Well?" Julia asked as Mello stood up, scanning the crowd.

"There," Mello said gruffly, pointing. Julia stood up and followed his finger to see a cool looking man walking through the crowd. He wore a red striped shirt that was covered by a vest-like jacket, and a pair of goggles covered his eyes. A lit cigarette dangled from his mouth, despite the very obvious no smoking signs that covered the airport. He spotted Mello and approached him, pulling the cigarette from him lips. Julia noticed that he was rather attractive as well.

"Hey," he said with barely a wave. He smiled as he continued. "I knew you'd need my help eventually man." His head turned slightly to Julia, who was looking at him curiously. "Who's the broad?" he wondered. "She's hot."

"Told you," Julia said to Mello before stepping forward with a smile. "I'm Julia," she said, holding out her hand.

"Name's Matt," he replied, shaking it. "So you working with Mello then?"

"Yeah," Julia answered.

"Hey Mello, you got a better team than I thought," Matt informed the blonde, placing the cigarette between his lips again. "So you got a plan working up or what?"

"He's got nothing," Julia informed him. Mello clenched his fist and half growled a reply.

"I'm working on plans." Julia rolled her eyes at him as Matt spoke.

"Yeah well, let's just get a move on," he shrugged, apparently not caring either way. "And let's grab a bite to eat on the way. I'm starving."

* * *

"Are you serious?" Matt said, tossing his bag on a bed as he stepped into the motel room after Mello, Julia trailing behind. "I come all the way out here to help you and I don't even get a damn room of my own?"

"It's just until the people next door check out," Mello replied. "You're just gonna sit around all the time anyway."

"Yeah, I guess it doesn't matter where I do that," Matt nodded, looking around the room. "Where do I sleep?"

"The couch," Mello answered. Matt shook his head.

"You're really gonna stick your best friend on the couch?" He turned around to face Julia. "What do you say babe, wanna share a bed?" Julia laughed as he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Sorry Matt but I think I'll pass."

"Aw, come on," Matt sighed, sitting on the couch that was to become his bed. He pulled a DS out of his pocket and opened it as Mello headed over to the table and turned on his laptop, sitting down to work.

"You play video games?" Julia asked, sitting down beside him and leaning over to see the brightly lit screen.

"Oh yeah," Matt answered easily. Julia watched him play for a moment before the words 'game over' slid across the screen. "Damn," Matt grumbled.

"Can I try?" she asked, holding out her hand. Matt looked at her skeptically.

"You play?" he wondered. "You don't look the type. 'Sides, I been trying to beat this damn thing for three days. It ain't easy, lemme tell you." Julia took it from him and instantly began maneuvering the tiny character through the complicated level.

"There," she said, handing it back to him. "I got you past the level." He took it from her.

"Damn…" he said, saving the game.

"What can I say? I'm good with my hands," Julia bragged. She stretched her arms out and looked over to Mello.

"So? Are we gonna just sit here all day?"

"No we'll have company later," Mello answered. Matt kept playing his game like it didn't matter, but Julia was curious.

"Who?" she wondered. Mello glanced over at her.

"Lidner," he replied before looking back to his screen. "To check out the new help I've brought in."

"Yeah the help you're making sleep on the couch," Matt said without looking up from his DS. His comment went unnoticed, however, as Mello's statement sunk in.

"Lidner?" Julia repeated. "Damn, this day just went to shit." Matt looked up now curiously.

"What? You don't like her?"

"No," Julia answered flatly. "Don't ask me why. I just don't."

"Well, that sucks," Matt said. "Any chance of a cat fight?" He grinned, and Julia found herself smirking too. She kinda liked Matt. He was definitely a refreshing change from Mello's recent campaign for ass of the year.

"I'd tell you not to get your hopes up," Julia said, "But I do have this overwhelming urge to scratch her eyes out."

"Sweet," Matt said, looking back to his game. "Feel free to rip shirts too."

Julia cracked a smile.

"Matt, shut up," Mello snapped. Hopefully, this encounter with Lidner would piss Julia off enough to forget about him, or at least that's what Mello was rooting for.

* * *

Julia spent the next few hours making herself look extra amazing; a useless attempt at making herself feel like she was better than Lidner. Now she sat on the couch beside Matt, eying Mello with bitterness as he chomped on his sweet chocolate. Finally, there was a knock on the door and Mello stood up, pausing in front of it to check the peep hole.

"Any trouble finding the place?" Mello asked as he opened the door. A pretty blonde woman stepped through the door, choppy bangs framing her face.

"No," Lidner answered.

"Damn," Mello sighed. "Might need to find a new hideout."

"Near doesn't know where you are," Lidner said. "Or anyone besides me for that matter."

"Right," Mello agreed. "What's happening with Near?"

"Nothing new since our last phone call," Lidner informed him. "You, on the other hand?"

"The old friend I told you about," Mello answered. Julia didn't like how they were having their own private little conversation by the doorway, and it annoyed her even more when Mello turned around and said "Matt," motioning for him to come over. Matt stood up, grunting as he did so, and headed over to where they stood.

"Hey," he said to the blonde woman as he approached. "I'm Matt."

"Halle Lidner," she replied, shaking his hand. "I sure hope you two have something up your sleeves."

"Excuse me," Julia said, standing up. "Three, actually." She was done being excluded from the conversation. Lidner looked over her curiously, picking up on her bitter tone, and nodded.

"I'm sorry, three," she added with no emotion, turning back to Mello. Julia clenched her jaw as the blonde continued. "Actually I can't stay long. I just wanted to stop by and see how you were doing."

"I'm fine," Mello said, slightly defensive. "But could you stay for just a second? I have some paperwork I want you to read over for me." Lidner looked at him and nodded. Mello turned from the room, grabbing Matt's arm and dragging him out the door.

"What the hell?" Matt said ripping his arm away once they were out of the room. "Why are you leaving Julia in there with her?"

"They should talk," Mello shrugged. He was grinning to himself, hoping Lidner would say just the right thing to piss Julia off.

"There's no paperwork is there?" Matt wondered casually.

"No," Mello replied. "Let's go to the vending machine. I'm running low on chocolate."

Julia stood awkwardly in front of Lidner, mentally kicking Mello's ass for leaving her there with her. Lidner crossed the room and sat in a chair across from the couch. Julia hesitated before following, taking a seat on the couch in front of her. Lidner watched Julia before speaking.

"So you work with Mello?"

"Obviously," Julia replied curtly.

"Hmm, it's funny he never mentioned you, although I did see you when Mello was using me as a hostage," Lidner continued. "You must have just started working with him."

"A few years actually," Julia replied. "But I'm not surprised he didn't mention it to you."

"And by that you mean?" Lidner wondered. She wasn't sure why this girl was being so rude, but she tried to ignore it.

"Nothing," Julia replied. "So you work with Near?"

"Yes," Lidner answered.

"And yet you work with Mello?" Julia questioned. "Why?"

"Because I want to," Lidner answered, crossing her legs and resting her elbow against the chair's arm. "I just want to bring down Kira, and I'm willing to work with anyone who might have a shot at it. But I should ask you the same question."

"What?"

"Well you work with Mello, but you don't seem all that interested in bringing down Kira."

"How would you know?" Julia snapped. "You don't even know me."

"First impressions say a lot," Lidner replied casually.

"Well I work with Mello because I want to, same as you," Julia informed her. "It's probably the only thing we have in common."

"Probably," Lidner smirked.

"But I, unlike you, am putting my trust behind one person to bring down Kira. You don't seem all that trusting."

"Trust is a different matter," Lidner explained. "I'm only interested in justice."

"You think I'm not interested in justice?"

"I think you're interested in something else," Lidner shrugged. "Which is why I'm guessing you're acting so hostile now. You're threatened by me."

"I am not threatened by you," Julia defended, crossing her arms.

"Well you should be careful girl," Lidner said, standing up. "Men who strive for justice tend to do whatever it takes to achieve it. They take whatever means necessary."

"Can I ask how you know so much about men who seek justice?" Julia asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You could, but I won't answer," Lidner said. "It doesn't matter what I say now. You've already formed an opinion of me. Anything I say now will just add to your resentment of me." Lidner wasn't going to deny anything, as she felt there was nothing to deny. Julia was clearly jealous of her, despite the fact that Lidner was never with the blonde to begin with. But she didn't feel like she deserved Julia's attitude, so she was going to let the clearly irrational girl think whatever the hell she wanted.

"So there's a reason I should resent you?" Julia wondered.

"This is childish," Lidner said, heading for the door. "Tell Mello I'll get the paperwork another time. Nice chatting with you." And with that, Lidner headed out of the room, only to see Mello and Matt strolling back up the hallway toward her.

"I uh…can't seem to find the paperwork," Mello lied. "I'll call you later this week."

"Understood," Lidner nodded as she passed them. "Oh and Mello?"

"Yeah?" he wondered, turning to look at her.

"You should let her go. You just might break her heart." Mello clenched his fist at his side as Lidner continued down the hall and out of sight. Matt turned to Mello.

"Well that was weird," he shrugged. "And also disappointing. She didn't look ruffled up at all."

"Can you ever be serious?" Mello grumbled.

"Hey cat fights are serious," Matt defended casually. "A girl could get hurt if they're not properly supervised. Come on." The two continued down the hall and into the room to see Julia flicking through the stations of the television.

"You didn't scratch her eyes out," Matt pointed out, plopping down beside her.

"Yeah, I managed to contain myself," Julia replied before looking up to Mello. "Lidner says she'll get the paperwork another time."

"Yeah," Mello said, heading over to the table where his laptop sat. "So what did you two talk about?"

"The difference between justice and trust, mostly," Julia answered.

"Trust is foolish," Mello commented. "I hope you came down on the side of justice." Julia remained quiet before Matt spoke.

"But trust can be wise too," he argued casually. "And chasing justice can be the mission of fools." Julia glanced at him in surprise. It felt almost strange having someone agree with her after all this time working with Mello. The blonde laughed at his response.

"Good thing I'm just working to beat Near," he nodded.

"And I'm just here to help an old friend of mine," Matt added. "No justice or trust about it."

"Nice to know we're all so devoted to catching Kira," Julia said with an eye roll. "Good team." Mello turned to look at his laptop as Matt pulled out his DS and Julia focused her attention on the television screen. Julia was obviously staying, which meant Lidner hadn't pissed her off as much as he had been hoping. Though now that he looked back on it, it was a shitty plan anyway. Lidner would never be able to drive Julia away from him herself, no matter how much Julia didn't like her. The only person who would be able to push Julia away was himself, and he knew it. Julia trusted him, and he had to push her away so he could fully focus on beating Near. Otherwise, he'd be nothing but a fool.


	8. Plans

**Chapter 8: Plans**

Julia sat around the motel in boredom. She and Mello were still sharing a room and Matt was in the room next door. Mello had tried to get Julia a room of her own, but she refused to have one. He was stuck with her, and it was his fault in the first place.

"God this is awful," she groaned, looking to the blonde across the room who was browsing a laptop. "We do nothing all day. And sorry to tell you this, but you're literally going nowhere in this race."

"Like you would know," Mello retorted, pissed that she would point that out to him. "And just go do something if you're that damn bored. It's not like you do anything around here anyway."

"If I asked you to come with me, would you come?" Julia asked. Mello glanced at her and shook his head.

"No." Julia crossed her arms.

"I've stood by you for how many years and you can't spare me a day?"

"No," Mello answered. "Besides, we both know it wouldn't be just an outing for you."

"Yeah, you're right. It would be a date," Julia replied with a shrug. "But of course that could lead to a relationship, and apparently you don't do that."

"I don't need that," Mello said. "And it wouldn't be with you if I did." Julia pursed her lips as he continued. "Relationships serve no purpose for me, and I don't need something stupid like that distracting me from my goals."

"You see no upsides in relationships?"

"No," Mello replied.

"Well I can think of a few activities involved that you might enjoy," Julia said, trying to sound sexy. Mello just scoffed at her as he snapped his chocolate.

"I don't need you for that," Mello replied smartly.

"Oh, so that's how Lidner got you?" Julia wondered. "She doesn't pester you about dating like me."

"No," Mello smirked, turning his eyes back to the screen.

"So…that's a no on the date then?" Julia asked after a moment. Mello didn't even bother with a response this time, and so Julia rolled her eyes and stood up.

"Fine, maybe Matt then," she sighed.

"If you can pull him away from his game," Mello chuckled as she exited the room. His gaze shifted to the door as she left, and he stared at the wooden frame for a moment in silence. He had really hoped the Lidner thing was working to drive her away, but it didn't really seem to be. If anything, it was making her more determined. Mello groaned and snapped his chocolate fiercely between his teeth. He didn't know what to do about that girl, and for a moment he figured maybe she'd grow to like Matt instead. But for some reason, this thought bothered him as well so he shook his head clear and turned back to the computer to work.

Julia entered Matt's room without knocking to find him, as Mello had warned, sitting on a chair in the room intensely focused on his DS. He glanced up at her as she entered before cursing toward the game, pressing the buttons quickly.

"Damn," he cursed again under his breath.

"Did I make you lose?" she wondered, closing the door behind her and crossing the room to sit on the couch across from him.

"Nah, it was kicking my ass anyway," Matt shrugged, holding it out to her. "Wanna play again?"

"No, actually I have a mission," Julia told him, leaning forward. "This place is crap and I want to get out of here so bad."

"Okay, so go," Matt shrugged.

"Well, will you come with me?" she asked. "I tried Mello but he's being an ass as usual. It could be fun."

"Could be," Matt agreed. "But probably not for me. I don't really like going out much." He leaned back in his chair and eyed her through his goggles. Julia couldn't help but think his outfit was strange, yet somehow it worked for him.

"You'd honestly rather sit around and play your DS all day?"

"Yeah," Matt answered, grabbing the pack of cigarettes beside him on the side table. He pulled one out and let it hang from his mouth lazily as he dug through his pockets for a lighter. Julia saw it on the couch beside her and grabbed it, leaning forward with it extended.

"Here," she said, flicking the flame on. Matt leaned forward and let it light the end, taking it between his fingers after a moment and exhaling a stream of smoke toward the ceiling. Julia tossed the lighter back onto the couch and eyed him.

"So you're turning me down?"

"Well, you're welcome to hang here but as for going out, no thanks." Julia sighed and reached across the coffee table, grabbing the pack of cigarettes on the smaller table beside him. She grabbed one from the box and lit it.

"You smoke?" he wondered curiously.

"No," Julia replied. "But if it eases the boredom I'm all for it." She lit it and then put it in her mouth; however, as soon as she tasted the nicotine, she instantly pulled it away, coughing, as she put it out on the ashtray in front of her. Her face was scrunched up in disgust, and she shook her head. "Yeah, no. I don't know how you put up with those things. They're bad for you, you know."

"I ain't dead yet," Matt replied with a chuckle, the cigarette moving up and down as he spoke. Julia smiled and stood up, heading back for the door.

"Hey, what's Mello doing?" Matt wondered.

"Something on the computer," Julia shrugged. Matt grabbed his DS and stood up, crossing the room after her.

"Watch out. That room's more boring than this one," Julia warned.

"I'll take my chances." The two then proceeded the short distance to the room next door, where Mello now sat without his laptop, biting the chocolate bitterly.

"Mad cause you've got nothing to go on?" Julia said, raising an eyebrow. Mello just glared at her while Matt crossed the room and sat in an available chair, turning his DS back on. Julia looked at them both for a moment before turning to Mello.

"Money," she demanded, holding out her hand. He looked up at her, and she looked down at him expectantly. After a moment she rolled her eyes and waved her fingers toward her palm, motioning for him to give it to her. "Look, I'm not staying here and since you won't come, you'd better give me some damn cash to entertain myself. You guys are hot but I can only stare at you both for so long."

"What are you going to do?" he asked.

"Shop," Julia answered. Mello dug in his pocket and retrieved a few bills, handing them to her from between his fingers.

"Thanks sugar daddy."

"Whatever," Mello said, clearly pissed by the name, as Julia turned for the door. "At least buy something good."

"Sugar daddy…" Matt chuckled once she had gone. "Can't say I've heard you be called that before. Wonder if the nickname will stick?"

"Shut up Matt," Mello snapped.

* * *

"Buy something good…" Julia repeated to herself. She was standing in a clothing store, browsing the racks upon racks of clothes. She was hoping to find something a little more girly to replace the clothes she'd grown accustomed to wearing around the Mafia scum. Someone there was always all over her, and so she never wore anything revealing. Now that they were gone and she had the opportunity, she was kind of hoping to show a little skin. Plus it couldn't hurt in getting Mello's attention.

"Anything I can help you with?" a saleswoman asked, approaching Julia. She had blond hair that was pulled up into a ponytail and glasses that rested on the bridge of her nose.

"Yeah…actually I'm looking for something kind of…revealing, I guess."

"Ooh someone special in mind?" the woman asked with a slight smile.

"I guess you could say that," Julia answered. The saleswoman nodded and led her to a rack.

"These are our more flirty pieces," she said. "And over there is the lingerie." Julia giggled.

"I'm not sure I'll need that exactly."

"Well just in case you change your mind," the woman laughed before heading off to help another customer. Julia skimmed the racks, but kept letting her gaze travel to the lingerie. She did share a room with Mello, and they did have some pretty cute pajamas over there. Maybe a little something sexy wouldn't hurt…

* * *

"Hey," Julia said casually, stepping into the room with a few bags in her hands. She was dressed in her new outfit, and it didn't take long for the two men in the room to notice. She had on a short black skirt and boots that reached just below her knees, and a light blue, spaghetti strapped tank top that didn't quite reach the waist of her skirt. She dropped her bags on the bed and sat down casually on the couch, crossing her legs and looking to the boys. "Anything fun happen while I was gone?"

"Nothing as exciting as what just happened a second ago…" Matt trailed off, obviously staring at the woman.

"Oh please, you should see what else I bought," Julia teased, raising her eyebrows slightly. Mello was still staring, and finally he clenched his fists.

"Why the hell'd you by that?" he wondered. "What a damn waste of money!"

"Hey, I haven't been able to dress like this in a while so deal with it. Besides, you should be nice to me. I bought you both a present."

"Huh," Matt said, sitting up. "Hear that Mello? We get presents."

"Yeah," Mello grumbled. Julia dug through a bag, quite deliberately tossing a few lacy items onto the bed for the room to see, before pulling out a small box.

"For Matt," she said, tossing it to him.

"Sweet," he said, admiring his new video game. "Thanks babe."

"No problem," Julia replied, turning back for the bag. "And for Mello…" she pulled out a large chocolate bar, and also a smaller box of chocolate. "Something sweet for a bitter personality."

"Right," Mello said. He didn't deny the chocolate however and instead held his hand out to take it. Julia leaned over onto the arm of his chair to hand it to him, quite deliberately showing a bit of cleavage as she did so. She was having a little too much fun with this, and was very satisfied when Mello's gaze shifted toward her for just a second before whipping back as if he hadn't noticed.

"Well it's late," Julia pointed out, standing back up straight. "So I'm going to go change into my new pajamas and go to bed." She grabbed an item that looked too lacy, too sheer, and too small to be pajamas and went to the bathroom.

"Man, can I switch rooms with you?" Matt asked, closing his DS and looking to Mello, who had his fist clenched around a chocolate wrapper.

"Get the hell out Matt," Mello snapped, standing up and heading toward his own bed. Matt pulled himself off his chair with a grunt and headed toward the door.

"Have fun," he said before slipping away. Mello tossed the wrapper toward the door and shut the light off quickly before Julia came out. He lay down and closed his eyes, finally hearing the bathroom door open.

"Asleep this early?" Julia wondered, walking across the room and turning the light on. "That's not like you." She wore very short black shorts and a white flowy tank top that was sheer aside from the area on her chest. Mello clapped his hand to his forehead and groaned.

"Jules…"

"What?" she said. "This shouldn't be an issue with you. You said yourself you have no interest in me and these pajamas are comfortable."

"Doesn't mean it's not a distraction," Mello said, snapping the light off again as Julia climbed into her own bed.

"Ah, so you do notice me," Julia said. "Good job. Next step is admitting why you kissed me."

"Let it go Jules," he grumbled. "We're friends and you're lucky we're that much."

"Nah, friends ended with that kiss," Julia sighed, closing her eyes. "Now it's either a relationship or this sort of denial thing you've got going."

"Or maybe it's just me using you when I need you."

"At least you need me sometimes," Julia said. That was the last thing Mello heard before she drifted off to sleep. Damn. This was going nowhere. She was stuck on this, and it had been his fault to begin with. He wasn't actually sure how to fix it either as he rolled over to sleep.


	9. Nothing

**Chapter 9: Nothing**

"Mochi," Misa Amane was saying on the screen of Mello's laptop. He, Matt, and Julia were sitting around watching her through secret surveillance, having finally gotten a place to start. They had discovered that she was working with Light Yagami, whom Mello had come to suspect as Kira.

"Yes?" the man she was speaking to on the screen replied. Mello was paying attention, but just barely as he lounged back in his chair with his chocolate. Matt was nearby with his DS, and Julia was in a remaining chair, playing with her hair.

"You're cooking is really good and I appreciate that you're doing everything for me, but it's been five days now," Misa continued on the screen.

"Right," the man beside her said flatly. Julia groaned. This was pretty boring, she had to admit.

"Light doesn't know about you hanging around all the time does he? I'm beginning to get a really bad feeling about this whole thing," the blonde on the screen continued.

"Uh huh," the guy replied, sounding about as bored as Julia felt.

"I mean, I know that Light trusts me totally, but don't you think that people might start saying I'm cheating? He'd be so jealous." Mello bit his chocolate as the completely pointless conversation on the screen continued. Julia didn't really see anything helpful in what the model was talking about, and she found her gaze shifting around the room.

Mello was looking at her, she noticed, but he looked back to the screen with a pissed off expression as her gaze shifted. She beamed to herself. Something was going on in his head, and even if he was feeling hatred or some other kind of dislike for her at the moment, at least he was feeling something for her.

She let her gaze shift to the left to see Matt, casually playing his DS. She found that she really liked him, and sometimes she even thought he was a better match for her than Mello. She even went as far as to think that if Mello didn't have her full attention, she may have even fallen for Matt instead. They obviously got along, and Julia almost hated Mello for stopping her from exploring other options. But she didn't hate him, and it sucked.

"That was totally pointless," Julia commented as Mello shut off his laptop, having finally given up on watching Misa. "If you think you're going to beat Near by keeping surveillance on that airhead I'd say you're delusional."

"Just shut up," Mello snapped. "I'm doing what I can right now and it's none of your concern." He clenched his fist in anger and Julia backed off, deciding to go easy on him for now.

"Fine, sorry," she said quickly. "I wasn't trying to upset you. I'm sure you'll beat Near in the end."

"Thank you," he grumbled, though he was sure she didn't mean it. Matt was still sitting by with his DS, and finally he snapped the game system closed and stood up.

"Well I'm beat," he said, stretching his arms out. "I'm going to bed." Julia stood up to walk him to the door. Today she was wearing a short pink strapless dress with a black leather jacket over her shoulders, and Matt shook his head toward his friend.

"I don't know what you meant Mello. I think that shopping spree was money well spent."

"He just has no taste in clothes," Julia shrugged as Matt pulled the door open. "See you tomorrow."

"Oh yeah…" he yawned. "Night babe."

"Night," Julia smiled. She kinda liked being called babe.

"What, do you like him now?" Mello wondered, still sitting in his chair with his chocolate. He had noticed her expression.

"Not as much as I like you," she replied, walking across the room and sitting on the edge of the bed, just a few feet from him. "Which completely pisses me off because he's way better for me than you could ever be. But here I am, loving you instead. What the hell is wrong with me?"

"Beats me," Mello shrugged.

"Mello, I just don't understand. When I kissed you the first time you kissed me back and it was perfect. But you never mentioned it so I assumed you just didn't want to talk about it, that maybe it was a lapse in judgment on your part. And then at headquarters you kissed me. I mean, it's one thing for me to kiss you, you already know I love you. But for you to kiss me? It's different. Why would you do it?"

"Is this going to be a nightly chat?" Mello wondered. "Because I'm getting damn tired of this. Jules, I don't love you and I'm not going to." Julia grumbled and stood up, facing him with her arms crossed.

"Well why the hell not?" she wondered. "I say you have feelings for me, and I think you're just too caught up in this pointless investigation to admit it."

"It's not pointless," Mello snapped.

"Yeah, it kinda is," Julia told him, now yelling. "All you want is to beat some kid who's always come out on top, and from the looks of it he's doing better than you are."

"Shut up!" Mello yelled, standing up off his chair. "You don't know anything about me so stop trying to judge everything like you know what the hell you're talking about!"

"I _do_ know what I'm talking about!" Julia defended. "I've been with you on this damn case the entire time!"

"Well no one asked you to be here! Just get the hell out then. I don't need you."

"Mello you asked me to be here!" Julia yelled, stepping closer to him and pointing toward him accusingly. "You wanted me to stay with you and it had to have been for a reason!"

"Yeah, if only I could go back in time and spare myself that pain," Mello growled. "I know a lot more now than I did then. Would get rid of that kiss too. Definitely would have spared me some headaches."

"You're such an ass Mello," Julia shouted. "Stop trying to hurt me with your bullshit! Just admit how you feel about me!"

"Here's what I'll admit," Mello said in a low voice that was nearly inaudible, stepping toward her so he was just a few inches from her face. "I think you're a weak little girl who can't survive on her own, and the only person around for you to latch onto was me. And as far as your feelings for me go, I've known about them for a while and I haven't hesitated to use them to my advantage if I needed to. You're quite the little puppet Jules." Julia was fuming now, and she felt her hand rising up toward his face with all the strength she had. She felt Mello's hand wrap around her wrist, holding it there and preventing her from slapping him. "Don't even," Mello breathed fiercely, not letting go of her wrist. Julia just looked up at him, their eyes locking together as they breathed deeply, both fuming. In that moment, as she tried to pull her wrist free of Mello's unloosening grip, she felt something rise up in her. It was anger, yes, but it was also passion. Neither Mello, nor Julie, knew what was going on inside them but they both snapped.

Their lips crashed together before Julia could even process the feeling, and she wasn't sure who had leaned in first. All she knew now was that Mello's mouth was on hers, and she was finally kissing him the way she had always dreamed. She was even expecting Mello to push her away, but instead Julia felt his free hand grasp her shoulder and push her backward against the wall. He was apparently still angry, as was Julia, but this did nothing to stop them.

Julia felt Mello's hands leave her wrist and shoulder and slide up her body as he pressed her closer to the wall. She realized then where this was possibly going, and her breath quickened as she reached his belt buckle and undid the clasp, letting her intentions be known in case they weren't clear in the first place. She wasn't sure Mello would have asked for her approval anyway. His hand reached the back of her thigh, and he lifted her up, wrapping his other arm around her back as he did so. Julia secured her legs around his waist as he carried her backwards, turning and falling over her onto the bed. Her hands were buried in his hair, and she was certain she was pulling it enough so that it hurt. Mello didn't seem to mind though as his hand reached back and traveled up her leg from her knee, finally finding the edge of her dress and sliding under it. His other hand did the same, and he quickly pulled the dress over her head, revealing a set of the lingerie she had bought the other day. Julia never thought she would put it to use this quickly, however.

Julia felt Mello's hands on her stomach, and she quickly reached up to the buttons on his vest, wanting nothing more now that to feel his bare skin against hers. She pulled at it roughly, hearing a tearing sound that she chose to ignore as she clawed the vest off of him, her nails scratching the surface of his chest.

Mello's mouth trailed to just below her neck, kissing her collar bone as his hands slid under her toward the hook of her bra. Julia heard herself moan "Mello", and then she felt his lips leave her collar.

"Shut up," he commanded gruffly in a low voice before returning to her lips. Julia complied, not that she could speak much with his mouth on hers anyway. But she would have shut up either way. She always did what he asked her to, and this situation was proving to be no different.

* * *

Julia never knew Mello could be that passionate. She thought that once Mello fully realized what he had done, he would leave her in disgust or yell at her. Instead he continued to make love to her for the rest of the night, becoming rougher as the night continued into the early hours of the morning.

She lay covered by a thin sheet that stretched across the bed to cover Mello as well. That had been everything she could have hoped for, and she was certain Mello had to be feeling the same way now. The kiss may have been nothing to him, but surely _that_ hadn't been. She glanced to her side to see him lying there, staring up at the ceiling blankly. Julia turned toward him and stretched her arm out over his chest, but instead of accepting it Mello pushed it away and sat up.

"What's wrong?" Julia wondered as he stood up, kneeling down to pick up his clothes that had been tossed aside. Mello didn't answer as he pulled his pants back on, fastening his belt before sitting on the edge of the bed, his back to her. He held something in his hands, and Julia wasn't sure what it was until he spoke.

"You ripped my vest," he said simply, actually sounding mad about it.

"It was a stupid vest anyway," Julia said with furrowed eyebrows, noting the tear along the seam as he shrugged it over his shoulders. "Is that all you have to say?"

"What else would I say?"

"Well…I just figured…"

"Jules, nothing's changed," Mello said calmly, keeping his back to her. Julia sat up, holding the sheet against her chest.

"We had sex," she pointed out. "How does that not change anything?"

"I don't want a relationship," Mello shrugged. "I don't love you. Nothing's changed."

"You're going to sit there and tell me that was _nothing_?" She was getting upset now, but she was determined to stay strong and so she pushed the feelings away.

"Yeah," Mello said, turning to look at her. "Sorry if you thought…"

"…That maybe you felt something for me after all?" Julia snapped. "That you ripping my clothes off suddenly somehow meant that you wanted me? Sorry, must have misread the signs." Mello shook his head and stood up.

"I should have known you'd make a big deal about this."

"Well how am I supposed to act Mello?" she shouted. "What the hell am I supposed to think?" Mello whipped around to face her, his eyes narrowed.

"You're supposed to know that I'm using you, like always," Mello snapped. "You're just convenient, and what just happened was nothing more than a little something to relieve the boredom." Julia felt uncontrollable tears pushing against her eyes.

"No it wasn't," she argued. "There was more there when you were looking in my eyes. I saw it."

"Right," Mello agreed sarcastically, stepping for the door.

"Where are you going?" she snapped. "Off to see Lidner? Gonna screw her too"

"No one said it was a competition but you," Mello pointed out. "You're the one who made it into a battle that has to be won, and from the looks of it she's doing better than you are." Mello repeated her words from earlier, and Julia felt her jaw clench. He just looked at her for a moment, before pointing to the nightstand.

"Pass me that chocolate bar," he said, holding his hand out. Julia reached over and took a hold of it, throwing it with all the force she had toward the blonde.

"Take your fucking chocolate!" It nearly hit him, and Mello clenched his fist as he leaned down to pick up the broken bar off the floor.

"Whatever," he said before heading out of the room.

* * *

Mello returned a few hours later, just as it was starting to get lighter outside, to find Julia sleeping on the bed, still wrapped in the sheet. He had been out pacing the streets, doing a lot of thinking and trying to figure out why the hell he had let himself go that far with Julia. What was worse was that he hurt her; that much was obvious from her tear-stained face. He realized while he was walking that he did care for her, a lot. But he had to end it, and if that meant acting like an asshole to drive her away, then so be it.

Mello approached the bed and looked down at her sleeping form. Her long black hair was slung messily across her face and around her shoulders, and she was breathing deeply in her slumber. Mello found that he wanted nothing more at that moment then to crawl back into the bed beside her, and he cursed to himself under his breath.

He hesitantly reached a hand out and stroked the hair away from her face, leaning down over her and kissing her forehead gently. He then left her side, sitting down on his own bed and rolling away from her. He didn't want to look at her anymore. He couldn't let himself be with her, and so tomorrow he would continue to act as if they had nothing together. He even hoped that maybe she would give up on him and leave. It would probably be better for both of them. He didn't like these feelings that had come up so suddenly, both unwanted and unwelcome.

* * *

Julia spent the next few days completely ignoring Mello. Whenever he spoke to her, Julia made a point of not looking at him, and if Matt was in the room she would interrupt Mello mid-sentence to speak to the brunette instead. It pissed Mello off that much was for sure. They still shared a room, but it was like Julia wasn't even there. Problem was she did exist in the room, and so Mello spent what he considered unnecessary time thinking about her when he could be thinking about Kira and beating Near.

Julia walked into the room after a day of hanging out with Matt, perching herself on the chair in front of the television and turning it on.

"I think I'm starting to form a plan of action," Mello told her. "I'm still thinking about it but I want to act soon. We can't let Near get ahead." Julia clicked the remote, not responding to his comment. Mello growled and turned back to what he'd been working on, eventually turning to look at her when he could no longer take the silence.

"What do you think you're getting out of this cold shoulder act?" Mello wondered. "Hoping I'll see what I'm missing when you're not around?" Julia didn't answer and so Mello continued. "Well it's not working." He informed her. "Just so we're clear, there is absolutely nothing on this earth that you could do to get my attention, and you might as well move on now."

Julia shifted in her chair as she settled on a channel, laughing at the picture on the screen.

"Jules, did you hear me?" Mello wondered. She didn't answer, but she heard him. She'd been thinking about it the past few days, and she had a pretty good idea of what her next move was going to be. And she was also fairly certain that it would catch Mello's attention. And if it didn't, then she figured it would help her move on. Either way, she was going to act, and so she stood up and headed toward the bathroom to change.


	10. Love

**Chapter 10: Love**

Julia opened the door to Matt's room that night without knocking, stepping inside and locking it behind her. Matt looked up at the sound, and his mouth was agape as he looked Julia up and down. She was wearing a white bath robe that she was slowly discarding in a slow striptease. Underneath the robe she wasn't wearing anything except a lacy black bra and panties to match.

"Not that I'm complaining but…what are you doing?" Matt wondered. He was sitting in an armchair, his DS open in his hands and a cigarette in his mouth. Julia didn't answer him and instead crossed the room. Matt grinned, but was still inquisitive as to what was going on. Before he could speak again, however, Julia had reached him and took the DS from his hands, placing it on the table beside the chair. She then climbed onto his lap, sitting on his thighs and taking the cigarette from his mouth. She leaned into him and pressed her lips to his roughly, running a hand up his arm to his neck.

"Julia?" Matt managed to ask as she pulled away to put the cigarette out on the table.

"Matt," she breathed as she turned back to him and slid her hands under the jacket vest that he was wearing. "I want you now. No questions." That was good enough for him as she pulled the vest off him, leaving just his red striped shirt before grabbing his face with her hand and bringing his lips back to hers. Matt didn't hesitate now and ran his hands along her thighs, reaching her underwear and tugging them off before sliding his hands up her back to unclasp her bra.

Julia grabbed the edge of his shirt and pulled it up and over his head, grabbing his goggles while she was at it and tossing the whole heap of clothing to the side. His hands returned a moment later to her waist, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. After a moment, she pulled away slightly, breathing heavily against his mouth, which was parted as well.

"Take off your pants," she commanded in a raspy voice before their lips collided again. Matt was instantly reached for the button of his pants when she said this. He unbuttoned them, and Julia was sliding her hands down his body to tug them off.

They were both completely naked in the chair now. The vague thought running through Julia's mind was how she never imagined she'd be having sex in a chair right before Matt entered her quickly.

She arched her back in pleasure as a moan escaped her lips. She then placed her face in the crook of his neck as he continued with the continuous thrusting movement.

Matt grunted into her hair as he could feel her tighten around him. "Oh yeah…"

Soon enough, the two lay in each other's arms breathing heavily and trying to regain their strength. Julia kissed Matt's neck before closing her eyes and laying her forehead against him.

"That was amazing," Julia breathed.

Matt was going to agree when some unwanted voice of a conscience popped into his mind. "Julia, maybe we shouldn't have done this." Julia ran her hand along his chest as she leaned back toward him, kissing his lips before trailing her mouth along his cheek to his neck. Matt had himself under control, clenching his fists at his sides to hold himself back from her as he continued. "We uh...we really shouldn't have done this."

"A little late, don't you think?" Julia whispered in his ear. Matt opened his mouth to explain, but he forgot it quickly when Julia met his lips again, this time a deep kiss that turned him on all over again.

Matt groaned and with all his will power, pushed Julia away gently.

"Julia, I can't..." Matt sighed. "I mean, we can't. Not again."

"Why not?" Julia asked, running her hands back down his chest. "Aren't you having fun?"

"Well yeah," Matt answered easily. "I'm not gonna lie I want you right now..."

"Yeah?" Julia smirked, leaning back towards him.

"...but you're Mello's girl," Matt finished quickly before she could kiss him and make him lose his train of thought again. Julia pulled back and looked Matt straight in the eye.

"I am _not_ his girl," she said sternly.

"Julia..." Matt began.

"Look," she said, cutting him off. "I don't belong to anyone, and I'm sitting here trying to have a little fun with you. Are you honestly going to turn me down?" Julia, possibly the hottest girl he had seen in a long time, was sitting on his lap throwing herself at him, and all he could think about was damn Mello.

"I'm not turning you down," Matt said. "Let me talk to Mello," he continued. "I just want to make sure."

"Matt, I'm telling you there's nothing there."

"I know," Matt sighed. "And I believe you but if Mello has feelings for you then I screwed up big time. Understand? It's just a guy code thing and I wanna ask him how he feels about you before we keep this up."

"Go ahead," Julia grumbled. "He's told me more than once we're lucky we're even friends."

"Yeah," Matt snickered. "But he can be complicated so if it's okay, let's just save this for another time."

"You sure?" she asked, leaning into him so they were inches apart

"Trust me babe," Matt managed to say. "If everything goes the way I hope, you won't be able to walk when I'm through with you." Julia met his lips briefly, tugging on them with her teeth before standing up and putting her undergarments back on. She then wrapped the robe protectively against her body.

"See you tomorrow then," she said before turning toward the door. Matt watched her go before standing up himself, heading to the mirror in the bathroom to see the lipstick smeared on his mouth from Julia.

"You damn moron," he said to his reflection as he turned on the water to wash it off.

* * *

"What the hell happened to you?" Mello asked, eyeing her curiously when she entered the room. He really wasn't expecting her to answer, but instead she spoke to him for the first time in three days.

"I was just paying Matt a little visit," she shrugged, heading for the bathroom. Mello's mouth practically fell open at her answer, and he felt himself growing angry. He headed for the door, fists clenched, when he realized this was ridiculous. Julia had been trying to get to him for the past few days, and this was probably just another plan to do just that. She probably wasn't even with Matt a moment ago. No, this was stupid, and he wasn't going to let himself satisfy her by getting upset. Instead he headed over to his bed and lay down, turning out the light. But after about a second of lying there, he stood up and stormed toward the door, closing it behind him.

He reached Matt's room and opened the door. He didn't think Julia was telling the truth, but he just couldn't think of anything else until he found out. He crossed the room for the bathroom, where he heard the sink running, and froze halfway there.

"Matt!" he shouted roughly. Matt poked his head out, which may not have been the best idea because the moment Mello saw him, his anger boiled over. Matt still had lipstick smeared on his face, and his shirt was gone. If that wasn't enough, he was only in his boxers and he had a sort of goofy grin on his face.

"Hey man," Matt said casually. "I'm glad you're here. I wanted to talk to you about something."

"You fucking ass…" Mello growled, throwing himself toward Matt, who dodged him easily and held his hands out in front of him.

"Whoa, calm down," Matt said. "What's the matter with you?"

"Don't fucking play dumb with me!" Mello shouted. "I know what you and Julia were just doing! Hope you had fun because you're dead."

"Hey, hey," Matt said, ducking under Mello's swinging arm and coming out behind him, whipping around to face him. "Relax nothing happened."

"She just walked into my room half-naked and you want me to believe nothing happened?" Mello shouted, throwing a fist toward Matt, who caught it with his hand before it could smash his face. He threw Mello's hand back down and held his own hands out in front of him.

"Alright alright, I'm not gonna say _nothing _happened," he said, causing Mello to throw a punch again. "But we didn't have sex man, I promise," he finished as he ducked Mello's swing. He hadn't planned on lying to his friend but it was the first thing that came out of his mouth.

The blonde glared at him, fuming, but managed to speak. "You didn't have sex with her?"

"No, I promise," Matt lied. Things were definitely not going the way he had hoped. "Actually that's kinda what I wanted to talk to ya about." Mello was still angry, but he managed to calm down enough to listen. He grabbed the chocolate bar he had in his pocket and bit it fiercely, sitting down on the couch.

"What?" Mello snapped.

Matt grumbled. "I was going to ask you if you had feelings for Julia, cause if not I was gonna go after her, but obviously you do." Matt swaggered across the room and grabbed his cigarettes, whipping one out and lighting it.

"Go after her?" Mello questioned.

"Well sex mostly," Matt shrugged. "I ain't gonna lie. But you know I kinda like her, and having a girl wouldn't be half bad. Maybe it could be something more."

"No," Mello grumbled. "It can't. I don't want you going after her at all." Matt exhaled a stream of smoke that floated toward the ceiling before sighing.

"Yeah, I figured you'd say that," Matt grumbled. "Damn…"

"I'm still pissed that you touched her in the first place," Mello admitted.

"So what, do you like love her or something?" Mello took in a deep breath and nodded, just barely, before standing up, throwing the chocolate bar across the room.

"Damn it!" he yelled. "I try my hardest to push her away and still I end up loving that annoying bitch!" Matt chuckled.

"Yeah that's love man," he shrugged. "I hear that it hits poor fools like you out of nowhere. So you gonna tell her?"

"Hell no," Mello answered. "My first priority is beating Near. She comes second, and until Near's out of the way she doesn't need to know how I feel."

"So lemme get this straight," Matt said, placing his cigarette in his mouth and plopping into his chair. "You love the girl and you say I can't have her, but you're not gonna go after her either? How is that fair?"

"Life's not fair," Mello shrugged. "She's off limits to you. Get over it. Besides even if you're not looking to date her, I'm still the only one who can have sex with her." Matt grabbed the cigarette between his two fingers and pulled it away from him lips, staring at the blonde across from him in disbelief.

"What? You've already done it?" he wondered. "When?"

"Few nights ago," Mello replied coolly. "We were fighting and then it just went from there." Matt brought his cigarette back to his mouth bitterly.

"Well, was she any good?"

"Hell yeah," Mello answered, snapping off a piece of his chocolate bar. "We were both kind of pissed and we weren't exactly being gentle. Best damn night of my life. Don't tell her I said it though. She doesn't need more reason to think we can have a relationship. But damn she was…" Mello trailed off, a slight smirk on his face. Matt grabbed his cigarette and ground it into the ashtray on the coffee table.

"Well, she's supposed to come back here tomorrow. I was sort of hoping you'd deny any feelings and I could pick up where I left off with her. What should I tell her now?"

"It doesn't matter," Mello replied. "Just tell her something. I swear man if you..."

"Will you give me some credit?" Matt grumbled, grinding the stub of his cigarette into a nearby ashtray. "You just told me you love her. I'm not gonna do anything now."

"Good," Mello sighed, standing up to find the chocolate he had tossed aside earlier. He found it and carried it back to the couch with him, snapping off the corner as he went. "Damn, this is the worst night of my life." Matt and Mello both sat in silence. Matt, thinking about how Julia had been using him the whole time and Mello, contemplating how he had landed on this feeling of love.

* * *

Julia emerged in the bedroom after taking a shower to see that Mello wasn't there. She grinned to herself, almost certain that she must have pissed him off enough so that he'd want to leave, and crawled into her bed. She pulled the blanket over herself and closed her eyes, thinking over the events of the day. She kind of liked Matt, but she loved Mello. Again she found herself thinking that if Mello didn't hold her heart, maybe Matt would. But it was useless to think about what could have been.

What she did know was that she very well might pick up where she had left off with Matt tomorrow. It seemed to be working in getting Mello's attention. Julia desperately hoped it would drive him to share his feelings, but she figured that if it didn't at least she'd have Matt. He didn't need to know he was her second choice.

As she fell asleep, Julia grew more and more certain that Mello was jealous. And if he was jealous, that meant he felt something for her. Now the only step was getting him to admit it.


	11. Devotion

**Chapter 11: Devotion**

Matt groaned under his breath as he headed toward Mello and Julia's room the next morning. He was not looking forward to this day. He knew that he wasn't with Julia or anything but he didn't like the feeling that overcame him when he found out that she had been with Mello as well. He didn't usually care about these kinds of things but for some reason, this was different.

As he reached the door, he shook his thoughts away and focused on being the laid back man he liked to be. No point in worrying about things now anyway. He knocked briefly on the door and waited for Mello to tell him to come in.

"Hey," he said to both of them, nodding his head in a greeting. Mello kind of half nodded back, but Julia stood up off the couch. Matt pointedly kept his eyes on her face as she approached him. She placed a simple kiss on his cheek. "So uh…Mello," Matt said, snapping back into focus as Julia walked away from him, sliding her hand along his chest until she was too far to reach. The pissed off blonde across the room clenched his jaw as Matt continued. "Did you need me to do any work in here or what? I mean I know you want me to take care of that…assignment…later," he added, hinting at the Julia situation, "But anything you want me to do now?"

"No," Mello answered, managing to control himself. He knew Julia had just kissed Matt in front of him to provoke a reaction, and damn if it wasn't working. "Go back to your room."

"Right," Matt said, shooting him an apologetic glance before heading out the door. Julia watched him go, mouthing 'see you later,' as he stepped out. She knew this little triangle she'd created was putting a strain on their friendships, but at this point she really didn't care. She wanted Mello and she would have him. Simple as that.

Matt had sat around his room all day in anticipation. He'd built up a pretty good little speech to recite to Julia explaining why they couldn't be together. He just hoped it came out when she stepped through the door. He was actually nervous, which was an odd feeling for him. He'd gone through a whole pack of cigarettes the last few hours, and he lost every damn round of his video game. But he'd promised himself he wouldn't let things get out of control with Julia again. He would just explain things and that would be it.

"Aw hell…" he mumbled under his breath as Julia stepped into the room.

"I've been thinking about you all day," Julia informed him, wasting no time reaching him and wrapping her arms around his waist. Matt just stood there like a helpless idiot as she ran her hands under his shirt. She met his lips and he felt her hands sliding back down his chest toward his pants, her nails grazing his skin.

"We can't," he said, breathing heavy. Julia furrowed her eyebrows.

"I know Mello didn't say he had feelings for me…"

"We can't do this because I know what you're doing," Matt said quickly, avoiding her comment.

"What's that?" Julia asked, leaning back into him and kissing his neck.

"You're using me," Matt replied. "I know you've had sex with Mello."

"What?"

"Julia," he said. "Sorry but I'm not gonna be your second choice. You either want me or Mello. Which is it?" Julia's face fell and she groaned.

"Are you mad?" she wondered quickly. Matt shrugged. "Please don't be mad at me."

"I could never hate you, babe."

"I mean, you know I love Mello but there's something about you. I want to be with you too, honestly. I didn't mean to play you like that. It just kinda happened."

Matt grabbed his empty pack of cigarettes in frustration. He dug in his pocket and managed to find a stray one, placing it in his mouth and lighting it. Julia didn't know what else to do but leave, not wanting to ruin their friendship any more than she already did.

"See ya tomorrow," he said, pulling his cigarette from his mouth and blowing smoke from his mouth.

"You're a good guy Matt," she said as she stepped from the room. "I'm sorry I didn't meet you sooner." She smiled slightly and headed back down the hall, leaving Matt alone. He shut the door and sighed. Maybe they could have been something more if they'd met sooner.

* * *

Julia giggled as she walked beside Matt to the candy store she used to go to when she was younger. She managed to convince Matt to leave his DS and go with her; even she was unsure how that happened. He had a disgruntled look on his face because he was outside, and Julia linked arms with him in comfort.

Ever since their conversation a few days previously, they had been spending more time together. After quite a bit of begging on her part, he was able to forgive her and found that he was glad he did. The small amount of not talking with her had actually upset him more than he thought it would.

Julia was starting to develop more feelings for Matt now and felt incredibly guilty for feeling that way. She knew Mello was still her love, but Matt was definitely working his way up on the list. They just seemed more compatible. Still, she couldn't shake the strong feelings for Mello, and so it was more confusing than anything.

"You know, a little sun won't kill you," Julia teased. "Don't look like you're in pain. It's a nice day out." It really was a pleasant day, and Julia was wearing a white and blue sundress as proof. It reached just above her knees and a white ribbon wrapped around her waist, tying in a bow behind her back. Matt had his usual clothes on, but went without his goggles because Julia had begged him to leave them behind. She loved being able to see his blue eyes.

"You're lucky I like you," Matt grumbled. "The outside does nothing for me."

Julia rolled her eyes. "Stop being so dramatic."

Julia could see the candy shop nearby and she suddenly grew excited. She hadn't been there since the day Mello had taken her when they first met, and now she would be sharing the experience with Matt.

Before they could make it all the way there though, a voice stopped Julia in her tracks.

"Julia Ferris?"

Julia paused before looking back in the direction of the voice that had called her name. Standing there was a tall, good-looking man with dark hair and blue eyes. He was in a suit and looked almost like a CIA agent, or something of the sort. He looked vaguely familiar but Julia couldn't exactly pinpoint from where.

"Can I help you with something?" Julia asked unsurely.

Matt looked at her and noticed she didn't seem completely comfortable around this guy. "You know him?" he asked her.

Julia didn't get a chance to answer as the man said, "Ms. Ferris, could you come with me please?"

The brunette squeezed Matt's arm, not wanting to go with the strange man. Matt took the hint and stepped in front of her protectively. "Look, she doesn't want to go with you."

The man nodded. "I mean you no harm, Ms. Ferris. Near would just like a word with you."

Julia tilted her head to the side. "Near?" Then something clicked. She suddenly remembered the man. "Oh I know you! You work with Near! Gevanni, something or other…Wait, why does Near wanna see me? Are you sure he didn't want to see Mello?"

"No. He specifically asked for you."

Julia thought about it for a moment. She was interested now, wondering what he wanted to say to her. She didn't really understand that boy anyway.

"You're not going anywhere without me," Matt cut in, looking to Julia.

"Near only asked for Julia," Gevanni said.

"I don't care if Near asked for the freakin' Queen of England. Julia is not leaving my sight. Near will just have to live with that."

Julia blushed at his strong words. She hadn't been expecting Matt to be so protective of her, but she was glad he was. It pleased her more than she could tell.

Gevanni sighed, knowing that arguing would get them nowhere, grudgingly agreed. The three took a car to the SPK headquarters and Julia's curiosity was increasing by the minute. In all honesty, what could Near possibly want with her? It wasn't like she was a genius or had a lead on Kira. She could think of nothing else. She voiced her thoughts to Matt, who snickered.

"Maybe he has a little crush on you," he replied. Julia gave him an eye roll as he continued, knowing that definitely wasn't the case. "I don't know how that kid's brain works. He was a mystery to everyone at Wammy's. He didn't get along with anyone and no one else really liked him either."

"Hmm, well that's kinda sad. The poor kid."

Matt shrugged and remained silent for the rest of the trip.

When they finally made it to the building, they walked straight into the room where Near was and saw that he was sitting on the floor playing with his action figures. He looked up at the newcomers and smiled a crooked smile. "Ms. Ferris, thank you for coming to see me. And Matt, it's been a long time since I've seen you."

"You haven't changed," Matt replied.

Instead of replying, Near's eyes wandered over to Julia before addressing everyone in the room. "Will everyone please leave? I'd like to speak to Mr. Ferris alone." The three SPK members did as they were told but Matt lingered by her side. He didn't want to leave her for some reason.

"It's fine," the brunette told him. "Go."

Matt nodded at her and hesitantly left the room.

"Well well, I've never seen Matt so taken with someone," Near told her. "Same with Mello. He's completely changed from what I remember."

Julia scoffed. "His determination to beat you hasn't changed though, has it?"

"No, I'm afraid not."

"So, what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

"I am well aware of Lidner's connection with Mello," Near started. Julia scowled at his comment. "And I wanted to know if you would do the same for me. I'm aware of your manipulating abilities; Matt and Mello are proof of that and I feel your help would be a valuable contribution to my team. At the same time, you'd still be able to work with Mello."

Julia furrowed her eyebrows at. She thought Mello was just being dramatic with his hate for Near but she was starting to dislike the white-haired boy herself.

"I do not manipulate people's feelings! I care deeply for both Mello and Matt and they care for me in return. Just because you're willing to do things for others doesn't mean you're being manipulated. Second, I really don't care if Kira is caught or not. I don't necessarily have a strong sense of justice or anything so it doesn't matter either way. And third, Mello dislikes you so much that I would never join you because of that."

Near watched her. Studied her, as he twirled a strand of hair between his fingers.

"Interesting. I don't think I've ever met anyone with such a strong devotion towards someone else."

Julia placed a hand on her hips. "You must not know a lot of caring people then. Mello saved my life and I will follow him till the end. Sorry Near, but I don't want to help you. I'm on Mello's side one hundred percent."

"I see," he said. "That's too bad."

Julia turned to leave but stopped. "Listen Near, I know Mello hates you and I don't exactly know your feelings towards him, but I think it's a real shame that you two can't work together. You would make a good team. I think that if Mello were to agree to you guys working together, then maybe we could be on the same team." She then left the room and made her way toward Matt, who was waiting for her.

"What did he want?" he asked immediately.

Julia shrugged. "You were right. He did have a little crush on me. The poor guy."

Matt smirked. "You turned him down flat, right?"

Julia chuckled. "Of course! You and Mello are my main men." Her face turned serious for a moment. "Speaking of Mello, let's not mention this to him, okay? I don't think he'd be too pleased that I went to talk to Near instead of getting him some chocolate, which we still need to do."

"Right."

Julia linked arms with Matt again as they made their way to the car that would take them back. Julia wasn't exactly sure what to make of her conversation with the white haired boy, but she was almost hoping that Near would see the light soon enough. She hoped he would realize that being indifferent towards everything wasn't the way to go, and that building relationships with people was important.


	12. Death

**Chapter 12: Death**

"What's going on?" Julia asked quietly upon entering the room. She had gone to the motel lobby to get some more chocolate for Mello from the vending machine, and when she came back she saw Mello talking on the phone with someone. Matt was sitting in the chair near him, completely absorbed in his video game, but he looked up when he heard the door open.

"Talking to Lidner," Matt told her after she sat down on the arm of his chair. She had been smiling down at him, but when she heard the name Lidner she crossed her arms over her chest angrily and huffed.

"Have that "eye-clawing" urge again?" Matt asked with a chuckle.

"You could say that." She then shifted her attention to the conversation Mello was having with Lidner.

"I'm planning on kidnapping Kiyomi Takada. If she really is close with Kira, then she might use the notebook to protect herself. I'm sure she would know who I am."

Julia's eyes widened at what he was suggesting. Even Matt looked up from his game console to give him a surprised look. Didn't he realize how dangerous that plan was?

Mello was continuing his conversation. "I'm the only one who can do it and this has to be done." He talked with Lidner for a few more minutes before hanging up, bowing his head down, like he couldn't believe what was going to happen.

Julia couldn't believe it either, so she openly voiced her thoughts. "Are you out of your fucking mind?" she yelled. "You can't kidnap her! You'll be-!" She stopped herself from finishing that statement and took a deep breath to calm herself. "Look, I know you're very reckless and you never think things through, which is fine 'cause you always make things work for you, but this time, I really feel like you should rethink this. This isn't a game, okay? If Takada is working with Light Yagami, who you assume to be Kira, then she probably knows your name and could easily kill you. Do you have a death wish?"

"I'm with Jules," Matt added. "This is one hell of a plan."

Mello shrugged. "It's the only thing we can do now."

"Stop it!" she commanded. "Just-please, stop…" She held her face in her hands and silence soon filled the room. Julia was frustrated with Mello. He just seemed so willing to do something dangerous like this. The Mello she knew would try to be extra cautious about things so he could stay alive long enough to crush Near into the ground. "Can't you just think of a different plan?" she asked. She lifted her head and made eye contact with the blonde.

"No, Jules," he said simply.

Julia's eyes started stinging and she knew she was about to cry. She couldn't start crying though; not in front of Mello and Matt. Instead of saying anything to his response, Julia just got up from the chair and walked out of the room, slamming the door shut in the process.

She moved away from the door and leaned against the wall next to it, sliding down onto the floor while the tears flowed down her cheeks freely. She brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them tightly.

She knew that there would be no good outcome from this plan. He would die. Simple as that. She just didn't understand why he was so adamant with this plan. They would act during the next day and then she would never see Mello again. She didn't even get the chance to make him love her back, and that was all she ever wanted.

Matt stared at the door Julia had just stormed out of. He felt bad that she was taking the situation so hard, but he knew where she was coming from. In fact, he knew that if he were in Julia's place and Julia was going on about an outrageous plan that was sure to kill her, he'd be upset as well. Heartbroken, even.

Although Matt put up a front for the sake of his friend, he actually cared deeply for Julia. He wouldn't want anything to happen to her and felt that when it came to it, he would risk his life for her.

He turned to his best friend to see that he was in bad shape as well, whether it was for his own safety or Julia's reaction to his plan.

"You're not gonna go after her?" Matt asked.

"There's no point," Mello replied. He had his head in his hands and refused to look at his friend. Matt didn't like his response. Even though he was his friend, Matt felt that he should be more considerate of Julia's feelings. "I don't think I want Julia helping me anymore. It'll be too dangerous for her to be involved. Lidner was right. I should have let her go before we both got too attached."

Matt stared at him for a few seconds before rising up from his chair. "It's about time you realized that," he told him while heading towards the door.

When he opened it and stepped outside, he saw Julia sitting on the floor crying to herself silently. Matt wasn't sure what to do to help but he kneeled down in front of her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

She looked up at him in surprise and quickly brushed the tears from her cheeks. "You don't have to be upset," he told her comfortingly. "I'm sure Mello's got a full proof plan."

"Don't kid yourself," Julia replied bluntly. "He's going to die and you know it." A fresh, new wave of tears sprung from her eyes, and she looked at the man in front of her. "I love him and I don't know what I'd do if he got himself killed."

Matt felt a slight stab in his heart but he ignored it the best he could. "I know," he replied.

"Just try not to be so negative. This could work out." He moved to sit next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him, grabbing a fistful of his shirt as comfort.

"Thank you Matt…" she said quietly. She closed her eyes and tried to calm herself the best she could as Matt embraced her.

* * *

Julia spent the whole day with Matt, not wanting to look at Mello, for she knew it would upset her even more. When nightfall arrived however, she knew she couldn't avoid him any longer and eventually made it back to their room.

He was sitting on his bed, watching the TV, although Julia could tell he wasn't entirely focused on it. His mind was elsewhere. He looked up when she entered, but then turned back to the screen.

"My plan doesn't have to involve you," he said.

Julia was surprised to hear him talking to her, since she figured he'd be giving her the cold shoulder until tomorrow. "What do you mean?"

"My plan is dangerous and I don't expect you to go through with it. I usually command you to do anything but this time, it's up to you."

Julia didn't have to think about this for one second. "As much as I'm opposed to your plan, I told you the day you saved me that I would be devoted to you, and I'm sticking to that promise. I'm not leaving you now."

Mello then lay down on his bed, and stared up at the ceiling. Julia figured he was ready for bed, and she was too. She was exhausted from all the crying.

As much as she wanted to sleep, however, she still had that nervous feeling, almost making her nauseous. Tomorrow, they would take a plane to Japan and the following day was the day they would kidnap Kiyomi Takada, and she wasn't sure she was ready yet. The last thing she wanted was for Mello to be killed. She wanted this night to last forever so tomorrow would never come.

She watched Mello for a few seconds, contemplating on whether or not this was the best time for a final heart to heart. If this would be it, she would feel better with herself if he knew everything.

"What is it?" Mello asked, noticing her staring at him. She walked over to his bed and sat on the edge next to Mello, looking down at him as he now lay beside her.

"You know I love you, right?"

Mello didn't respond so Julia continued.

"You're the most important person in the world to me. But I screwed up. It was when I was mad at you after we were together and you said it meant nothing. It killed me to hear you say that so I went and…" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened her eyes and looked at Mello's bright ones she could see that he looked intrigued. "Well I don't know if you've noticed but Matt and I have gotten pretty close."

"I've noticed."

"Matt and I had sex," she blurted out.

Mello sat upright in the bed and just looked at her incredulously. "You and Matt…" She could see that he was starting to shake uncontrollably in his anger.

Seeing him this angry caused tears to spring to her eyes. This wasn't how she pictured her discussion with him to go.

"It was all my fault," she explained. "I forced myself on him. He was kinda hesitant to begin with and then after he was all guilty thinking about you. Don't be mad at him."

Mello's angered expression fell off his face. He stared down at her fidgety hands that were in her lap. For some reason, he couldn't bring himself to look at her face and continued to stay at her hands.

"Do you love him?"

"Are you stupid?" Julia almost yelled. Mello jumped and watched her again, almost as if he was unsure of what she was going to do now. "After all we've been through you have the nerve to ask me that?" She wiped her tears furiously and glared at him. "I do feel something for him but you're the only one for me! Why is that so hard for you to understand?"

There was silence between them as they stared at each other. The only sound was Julia's sniffling every few seconds.

"Lidner never meant anything to me," Mello confessed. "I didn't want you to get too close to me and she always seemed to rub you the wrong way so I took advantage of that."

"To hurt me." Julia didn't say that like a question because she knew it was the truth. She had finally managed to calm herself down as they conversed but she could feel herself tearing up again. "You've hurt me a lot in the years we've been together Mello but I've taken it because I'm crazy about you. Or just crazy, who knows? But when you told me your plan today, I think that's the first time you've hurt me bad enough to cry."

Before Mello could stop himself, he lifted his hand and rubbed Julia's cheek, taking a trail of tears with it. She leaned her face into his hand and closed her eyes, content that he was showing some sort of emotion. He then placed his hand on the small of her back and guided her closer to him. He moved over in the bed making room for her.

They were now lying on their sides facing each other. Mello kept his hand on her waist and was rubbing small circles with his thumb.

"I don't know what made me save you that night, but I'm glad I did Jules."

* * *

This was the day. The plan was being put into action today and everyone was anxious. Things could go according to plan or things could fail miserably.

The trio was outside the motel discussing the details one last time. Matt and Julia were to cause a scene which would allow Mello the opportunity to take Kiyomi Takada.

"So, are we ready?" Mello asked them.

Matt nodded and gave him the thumbs up while Julia just gave him a look.

Mello rolled his eyes. "Don't start, Jules." Instead of saying anything or arguing, she walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his slim figure. She held on tightly, taking in his scent and the feel of his body.

Matt pointedly looked away and walked off to give them some privacy. Mello figured he was probably going to the side of the building to spy on them.

Mello wasn't exactly sure what to do. He felt, for some reason, that it was his last time to say or do something right for Julia. He lifted his hands and placed them on her hips as he spoke. "You have Matt."

"I love Matt," she agreed. "But I love you more." She then pulled away from him and started to make her way to the car she and Matt would be taking until she felt a hand on her wrist. She turned around to see what it was that Mello wanted, and was surprised when he pulled her into him and placed his lips on hers. This wasn't like any of the kisses he had given her before. They were usually rough, but this one was tender and soft.

The kiss didn't last as long as she would have hoped and soon they broke apart. Mello gazed into her dark blue eyes. "I do care," he said simply.

Julia looked at him, wide-eyed, before smiling. "Mello…"

He sighed and stepped away from her, increasing the distance between their bodies. "Just don't get caught on me, okay?"

Julia giggled. "Only if you promise me the same thing."

Mello nodded and she made her way to the car where she would wait for Matt. He came from around the corner and stood in front of Mello.

"Nice," Matt commented.

"I knew you were spying," Mello said with an eye roll.

Matt shrugged. "I'm an expert in espionage. What can I say?"

Mello's face grew solemn. "You can say you're gonna protect Jules with your life. I mean it."

"Don't worry. I would have done that, even if you hadn't asked me to," Matt told him.

"Good," Mello said. He then decided to change the subject. "I know you lied to me, Matt. Julia told me you two were together."

Matt's cigarette almost fell out of his mouth. "Shit…listen man, it just kinda happened. Trust me, if I had known you loved her then I wouldn't have touched her!"

"Take care of her," Mello said cutting of his friend's apologetic rant. "And don't go and get yourself caught."

Matt, stunned about Mello's change in demeanor, could only nod. "Good luck."

Both men shook hands one last time before turning around and walking to the vehicles they would be taking for this mission.

* * *

Julia gripped the handle of the car door tightly as the red car they were in pealed through the streets. They were being chased by Takada's bodyguards and Matt was trying hard to lose them.

"Persistent bastards aren't they?" he asked. His cigarette hung limply from his lips as he drove.

Julia shut her eyes forcefully and almost screamed when they nearly hit another car. They were going at an incredible speed and Julia was starting to feel queasy.

"Do this often?" she asked sarcastically.

Matt turned to the side to look at her and saw her nervous face. "You alright?"

"If these guys don't catch us, we'll surely die in a car accident," Julia said.

Matt laughed heartily. "What are you talking about? This is fun!"

Julia didn't even respond to his absurd comment. She changed the subject instead. "I hope Mello's okay."

"I'm sure he is," Matt told her. It didn't exactly make Julia feel any better since there was no way he could be one hundred percent sure. "Listen Jules," he started. Julia looked at him. "Mello loves you."

"What?"

"He's completely in love with you." He paused for a moment. "I just felt like I had to tell you that for some reason." Upon seeing her disbelieving face he added, "He told me himself. He even threw a fit over it."

Before Julia could say anything, Matt noticed a circle of black cars blocking off his exit. It was those damn bodyguards!

"Hold on!" he barked. He then punched down on the brakes, sending the car grinding and swirling until it finally came to a complete stop. They were completely.

"Damn it…" Matt mumbled.

"This can't be good," Julia said fearfully. "What are we gonna do?"

"We go with what they want," Matt replied. "They shouldn't shoot or anything. Maybe just arrest us." Julia highly doubted that as she watched the men raise their guns and point the weapons at them. Her heart was practically pounding out of her chest, and she leaned into Matt for comfort.

"It'll be fine babe," Matt comforted. He placed a hand on her cheek and brought her face closer to his, closing the space between them. His kiss was just as soft as Mello's had been, and she tried her hardest not to cry. Things definitely weren't going according to plan. They were caught and she was sure something bad was happening with Mello as well.

When they pulled away, Matt smirked. "I know I don't compete with Mello but I didn't want my feelings to be the only ones left in the dark." He then pulled out a gun from underneath his seat and placed it behind him in his vest. Julia was thankful the windows were tinted or she was sure they would have simply killed them right there. He then grabbed another gun and handed it to the brunette. She looked at it dubiously.

"Just in case," he said.

She took it carefully and wondered where on earth she could put it on her. Matt's gun was visible only from behind so she figured her back pocket would be her best bet.

Matt grabbed her hand with his right hand after she had hidden her gun and opened the door with his left. He stepped out first and then helped Julia out from his side of the car. Then he raised his hands above his head and hinted at Julia to do the same.

"Hey, come on, give us a break!" He yelled loud enough for them to hear him. "Since when were the Japanese allowed to carry around such big guns? You got us, we're part of this whole kidnapping incident. That means you'll have a lot of questions to ask."

Julia's eyes widened. Why was he testing them like that? She looked over at Matt and saw that he was moving his hand ever so slightly for the gun. If they had a shoot out here, the two of them versus the men, they would surely lose. It just made sense to go along quietly, but apparently Matt was going to try for it anyway.

"You won't shoot-" Matt didn't get to finish his statement because as soon as the words left his mouth, a rain of bullets shot down on the two of them. Matt stood in front of Julia, trying to cover her the best he could from harm, but it was no use. Some of the bullets would pass right through Matt and hit Julia as well.

Julia slid down along the car onto the asphalt. She was still alive, but just barely. Her body felt completely cold and she couldn't shake away the tired feeling that was threatening to take over her body. She had to stay awake.

The bullets stopped and finally Matt collapsed on the ground, already dead. His cigarette fell from his mouth and Julia's eyes followed it to the ground. Her mind was too fuzzy to think clearly anymore, and she could feel her eyes growing heavier by the second. She leaned her head against Matt's shoulder, who was also leaning against the car.

The last thought she had before she finally succumbed to the sleeping feeling was of Mello, the man she had loved until the very end.

* * *

Mello was surprised at how well things were going. He had been successful in apprehending Kiyomi Takada, and had gotten rid of all her clothes and any other possessions she might have been carrying with her. He still wasn't one hundred percent certain that she didn't have a piece of the notebook with her, but he decided to take that chance.

As he drove along, he watched the progress of the recovery of Kiyomi Takada on the small screen of the TV he had placed on the dashboard. Matt's totaled car suddenly flashed onto the screen.

"As for the suspects who were gunned down earlier," the anchorwoman announced, "we're still unable to identify them. The police are tracking the remaining suspects…"

Mello's eyes widened. Gunned down?

Suddenly, he was overwhelmed by a rush of emotion. He couldn't believe that they had been caught! He clenched his fists and slammed them against the steering wheel in frustration. This wasn't supposed to happen! The two most important people in his life were not supposed to be killed!

He shut off the TV before he could hear more and turned his eyes to the road, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. He was pissed that things hadn't worked out for him, but for once he wasn't thinking in the context of beating Near. He was angry, more so, that there was no shot at a life after the battle. There would be no Julia to come home to, and no Matt to visit, so then what? What purpose would his life have after the competition with Near was over?

Finally, his hands loosened on the wheel slightly and he sighed. Maybe it was for the best. For some reason, he didn't think he would be apart from them much longer. He was filled with the feeling that he wasn't going to last much longer, and for some reason this didn't worry him. At least this way, he wouldn't leave Julia on her own, and maybe he could finally treat her the way he should have treated her all along; the way he should have loved her all along. All he could hope for now was that wherever Julia was, she was waiting for him. Waiting for him to come to her, and waiting to forgive him.


	13. Friend

**Chapter 13: Friend**

It was weird. She couldn't remember how she had gotten there but for whatever reason, it didn't even seem to matter. If she had been thinking with her right mind then she would be beyond confused but there was a calm feeling surrounding her.

She looked around and saw a familiar looking kitchen and living room. It wasn't much but being here made her feel happy, like she was at home. Why was it so familiar?

"I think being here was the only time I was truly happy," a voice behind her said. She whipped around, startled that someone was in the room with her. When she saw who it was, her face broke into the biggest smile she had ever managed.

"Mello!" She ran towards him, arms outstretched, and engulfed him with a hug. He reciprocated the hug tightly, holding her for a few long moments before letting her go. "I'm so glad you're okay! I don't know what I would have done if Takada had killed you!"

"Jules, remember when we lived here?" Mello asked, changing the subject. Julia took this moment to fully take in where they were. When it finally hit her, her eyes widened.

"This is where we lived before joining the Mafia! I loved living here with you! Wait…what are we doing here? Where's Matt?"

Mello took Julia's hand in his and led her to the dining table. He took her by the waist and placed her on the table so she could be eye level with him. Julia could see that Mello's face was like porcelain, which was bizarre. She placed a hand on the side of his face. "What happened to your scar?"

"Thinking back on it, I think this is where I fell in love with you," Mello continued as if Julia hadn't spoken in the first place. He leaned forward and captured her soft lips with his own. Mello sucked on her lip for a few seconds before letting go. "I wish I could have told you that sooner."

"All that matters is that you said it," Julia replied, trying not to cry. "I love you so much." Instead of trying to be delicate she crashed her lips on his, wanting to fully taste him. "God, I love you," she mumbled against his lips. "We can spend the rest of our lives together without worrying about Kira or Near."

Mello placed his hands on Julia's shoulders and pushed her slightly away from him. Julia wasn't having it and tried to kiss him again, not yet having had enough of him. Mello wouldn't cave. He needed to talk with her, not kiss her like he wanted to so badly.

"No."

That snapped her out of it. "W-what?"

"We can't be together."

Her face went to that of confused to angered in less than two seconds. "What the hell do you mean we can't be together? After all we've been through and you finally admit that you love me?"

"We'll be going different ways soon," Mello started to explain.

Julia quickly cut him off. "I'm going where ever you go."

Mello glared at her. "Over my dead body!" His eyes widened at his own choice of words. He cleared his throat before continuing. "You're not going with me. You'll be doing bigger and better things soon enough. And I know you'll have the courage to move on."

Julia didn't understand what he was talking about. She had been trying to put on a brave face but what he was telling her was slowly breaking her heart. She was becoming an annoying faucet again and she hated it. It seemed all she had been doing lately was crying. "I don't want to move on."

"Moving on doesn't mean forgetting about me, Jules."

"Why are you talking like this? You're talking to me like you're dead or something."

"You know how I hated Near so much that I refused to work with him? I let my anger get in the way and things could have turned out so much differently. When you get the chance, don't make the same mistake I did."

Julia furrowed her eyebrows. He wasn't making any sense.

"Just remember what I said, Jules." Mello then turned around and made his way towards his old bedroom. When he entered, there was a blinding light that flashed into her eyes causing her to squint.

When she opened her eyes fully, she saw nothing but white walls around her. There was an annoying beeping sound in the background causing her already splitting headache to hurt her even more. She was sure her head was going to explode. Not only was there an incredible pain in her head but the rest of her body was practically immovable. She opened her mouth to cry in pain but her throat was so dry that no sound came out.

"Try not to move," a voice said next to her. She tried to turn her head to look at who it was, hoping it was Mello since she had just seen him. She found that she couldn't so she moved her eyes, the only part of her body that didn't hurt at the moment. When she moved her eyes to see her visit, she couldn't get a good enough look but saw more white. White? The only person she knew who looked like that was…

"N-ne-Near…?" she croaked. The effort was overwhelming.

"It's surprising you're even alive right now," he responded. "You've been out for two weeks."

"W-wh-what h-hap-happened…?"

"After the shootout with Takada's body guards, they found that you had in fact survived. Turns out Matt had taken most of the fatal gunshots himself which proved to save your life. Once they found out you were still alive they decided they would question you once you had recovered."

"M-Mello?" She whispered.

"Kiyomi Takada wrote his name on a piece of the Death Note."

Julia gasped. She regretted this decision however as it racked her body with more unbearable pain. Tears leaked from her eyes and she tried to sob but it came out as pants instead. She really was a mess.

"If…it makes you feel any better, Kira has been put to justice. I wouldn't have been able to do this without Mello."

It didn't make Julia feel better in the least bit. Mello and Matt were both dead. She had somehow managed to survive and now she had to live without them. How would she be able to?

"Not that you'll believe me but it wasn't my idea. It was Mello who realized that the only way to surpass L would be if we worked together to defeat Kira. He knew that kidnapping Takada would give me the evidence I needed to solve the case. Kira was Light Yagami."

Julia managed to calm down a bit upon hearing Near's explanation. She couldn't believe the only person she ever loved was gone forever.

"I'm sure you are unaware of this but before he was killed, Mello contacted me in regards to what would happen to you after this whole ordeal." Julia was silent now. She couldn't even picture Mello phoning Near up for anything, let alone to talk about her. "He told me about how well you work with other people. Now that the Kira case is over and the fake L has been put to rest, I've decided to take my rightful place as L's successor. And upon Mello's wish, I'm asking if you'd like to join me."

Julia was stunned. Mello had really wanted her to work with Near? His worst enemy? She never would have imagined that something like this would happen. That he would actually be propositioning her. But if it was what Mello had wanted, then she would surely do it.

Julia tried to reply but when she did she whimpered in pain. Her eyes were getting heavier. This conversation must have taken a lot out of her and she could see the world around her fading black.

* * *

It had taken a long time for Julia to recover from all her wounds the night Kiyomi Takada was kidnapped. She had lost a lot of blood from all the gunshot wounds and needed a blood transfusion. After the surgery, she had to regain her strength so she would be able to start a new chapter in her life. With Near.

He was very cold towards her at first. She assumed this was just his personality since he was the one who asked her to join him in the first place. He wouldn't talk much to her and was always preoccupied with his toys or building something.

He gave her simple jobs to do at first like going through files of different criminals and giving her opinions on them. She wasn't very good at figuring the crimes out so he eventually used her as the face of L. If he needed to meet with an official, he would send Julia in his place to discuss business.

They surprisingly worked well together.

Three years later, it seemed a new Kira had resurfaced.

"Can the Shinigami just stop dropping their damn notebooks?" Julia complained next to Near. She was building a house out of Tarot cards beside him on the floor as they talked. This was usually what they did when Near wanted to discuss the latest mystery to solve. Her small house hardly compared to the massive city that Near was building with the same cards. "I'd be happy forever if I didn't have to hear about Kira again. Ruined too many lives."

"This Kira is nowhere near the same level as Light Yagami," Near responded. "Not even a threat."

Julia eyed him. "If you say so."

Suddenly, two familiar people entered Near's headquarters. Julie recognized Halle Lidner easily but the other man she didn't really know. She knew he had worked previously with Near however. Halle Lidner no longer annoyed Julia. They were nowhere near best friends but she no longer felt the animosity she had previously felt.

"What is it now?" Near asked, not taking his eyes off his cards.

"You already know what's going on in Japan, right?" the man asked.

"I know," was Near's simple reply. "But right now, more important than that, is that if you knock over my Tarot card tower, I'll be pissed."

Julia could vouch for that. One time last year, she had accidently sneezed which caused a whole tower to flutter to the ground. He was so angry with her that he didn't talk or look at her for two weeks. If she had to give him a report, she was forced to email it to him.

Halle Lidner and the man, Rester, she thought it was, looked at him in surprise. They just didn't know him like Julia did.

"Near, it's gotta be Death Notes," Rester said. "Why aren't you doing anything?"

Near finally looked up from his work. "I'm thinking of what L would do." Julia watched Near as he placed his L finger puppet on his index finger and began looking through his deck of cards. Near frequently did this; trying to figure out L's way of doing things.

"That's a relief," Rester admitted. "But this Kira won't fall for the same bait L used last time."

"Please don't refer to him as Kira," Near said simply. He began twirling a strand of white hair between his fingers. "It's insulting to L and to Kira. He will be known as C-Kira. Cheap Kira."

Near then began explaining his theories on this new C-Kira, about how with the evidence provided, it was just an uninspired murderer who had the same powers of Kira but didn't have the drive or intelligence to surpass him.

He had come to the conclusion that acting like L meant to only take the cases that interested him and frankly this case wasn't worth it.

After Lidner and Rester left, unsure of what to make of Near's decision, he turned to Julia.

"I'm curious as to what you think," Near told her after an hour of silence.

Julia shrugged. "Whatever makes you happy, Near. I just go with whatever you say. You never disappoint."

The white-haired man didn't say anything. Instead he turned to his cards with a smile on his face.

**The End**

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end. The ending is drastically different but for whatever reason the idea hit me and wouldn't leave my mind. **

**Also, just want to know what people think of Julia and Near. I kind of want to write a Near story but I can't decide if it should be with Julia or another girl. What do you guys think?**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this story!**


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